The Heroes of Remnant
by son44
Summary: After falling in Tartarus at the hands of the arai, Percy Jackson's destiny has been changed. He now must fight in a new world, with old and new friends to save the people he has come to care about.
1. Kill the Boy And Let the Man be Born

**Chapter One of The Heroes of Remnant. Re-Write Published as of 5/21/19**

 **Song of the Chapter: Becoming Whole Again - Composed by Alan Silvestri**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own anything you recognize.**

* * *

 _Three Weeks Before the Fall of Gaea_

 _Ten Months Before the Battle of Beacon_

* * *

 **- _Perseus Jackson_ -**

For a minute, he believed he was winning against the _aria._ They were no match for Riptide, it's glowing celestial bronze metal had dimmed in the darkness of Tartarus and the monster dust covering it didn't add any style points.

Eventually, the _arai's_ curse's hit him like a brick wall. Percy felt pain along his rib cage. The right and left helms of his tattered shirt quickly became sticky with blood as if someone had run him through with a javelin.

Or an arrow…

A wave of vertigo washed over Percy. The _arai_ talked about vengeance, a curse from the slain…

' _No'_ Percy thought, ' _it couldn't be.'_

Percy flashed back two years ago to when he had explored the Labyrinth with Annabeth, Grover and Tyson. It was when they had stopped in Texas and Percy had fought the demon rancher, Geryon.

"I remember" Percy croaked, "Geryon, I killed him this way. With an arrow."

 _"Yesssssss,"_ an _arai_ hissed, " _T_ _his is punishment Percy Jackson. Feel the curses of those you have slain!"_

Percy looked around, holding Riptide at the ready, but the amount of _arai_ had increased dramatically. The demon grandmas emerging from the darkness of Tartarus at an alarming rate.

 _There is no escape demigod_ , the _arai_ shrieked, _you must make a choice. You or your beloved!_

Percy's head immediately snapped up and he whispered his girlfriend's name "Annabeth..."

How could he have been so stupid? He had heard her yelling for him, but her temporary blindness courtesy of the _arai_ had done him no favors. The only up side was that the _arai_ weren't focused on her and had left the daughter of Athena to wander.

Percy opened his mouth to say something smart to the swarm, but instead of _HA! You're as dumb as me during my math tests,_ it came out as a grunt of pain and he reached for his side with his free hand.

Percy immediately felt a warm sticky substance coating his hand, and he knew it was blood.

An arai had grown impatient and charged towards Percy, but with a quick side step and a slash of Riptide, the demon exploded into dust.

At first, Percy didn't feel anything, and then his sword arm became tired. A few seconds later, his arm started to quiver and shake uncontrollably and he eventually had to rest Riptide on the ground. The rest of the _arai_ saw his moment of weakness and they charged the demi-god. For every _arai_ Percy cut down, six more seemed to take their place.

Percy had switched Riptide into his left hand and began to slash. However, his left began to tire quickly as the _arai_ horde grew ever more ravenous and descended upon him, like a wave against the shore. His body ached and his vision began to blur. He tried to make his way toward Annabeth, but she was ever just out of reach, calling his name as she wandered amongst the burnt earth that was Tartarus.

As Percy struggled to make his way forward, an _aria_ slashed Percy's back with its claws. With a pained snarl, Percy spun around and cut the demon down. However, it didn't take long for him to collapse when the next curse hit.

At first, Percy only tasted something bitter in his mouth, as if he had taken a bite of Katie Gardner's all natural broccoli. However, his mouth quickly began to burn, almost as if the waters of the Phlegethon and diesel gas had been mixed together and set a blaze with a match. It didn't take long for him to collapse to the ground and double over, his body shaking like he had been electrocuted. It felt like fiery snakes were working there way down his throat and into his body, threatening to turn him to ash, yet paralyzing him at the same time.

The _arai_ had stopped attacking Percy momentarily and watched gleefully as he writhed on the ground in agony, scratching at the ground for any type of relief from the torture he was undergoing.

" _Ahh a curse from Phineas",_ an _arai_ cackled from amongst its monster siblings, " _gorgon's blood is truly a miserable way to go_."

The mention of Gorgon's blood stirred up a wisp of a memory within Percy. He remembered a quest, and a couple of names; maybe something that began with an F or a H? However, just like his amnesia he had a few days before, the memory evaporated just as quickly as it sprung up. But remembering didn't matter right now. All that mattered was fighting _back_.

Percy grit his teeth and tried to rise from the floor. Every muscle, every fiber of his being seemed to be screaming in rebelling, but he couldn't give up. Finally, he made it to his feet and he could hear the arai began taking bets on how he was going to die.

" _His head will erupt first",_ one screeched.

" _No!"_ , another screamed from the back, " _He will combust all at once!"_

Neither sounded like very pleasant options to Percy, but only one thing was on his mind now. The one person who could get them out of this mess.

"Bob," Percy croaked, "I need you."

It was a desperate plea, one that Percy doubted would be answered. He had forgotten about Bob, and left him to become an unpaid janitor in arguably the second grossest place on the planet. Bob knew now, Percy Jackson was no friend of his.

"I'm sorry..." Percy whispered.

" _Ha! He is sorry!"_ the arai shrieked " _You should be sorry demi-god scum. You will pay for you crimes against the children of Tartarus_!"

At first, Percy's mindset was that he would be able to fight his way out against the arai, the way he always had. A heroic mixture of brain and brawn, which in reality was just thinly vailed desperation. However, Percy knew no weakness against the arai that could be exploited, no embarrassing skeletons in the closet that he could use to push their buttons. Without Annabeth, there was no braining his way out of this one.

The seconds dragged on for what felt like hours as Percy tried to come up with some semblance of a plan. His options had now grown exponentially limited. He could feel his strength leaving him as his own blood poured down his rib cage and back, soaking through the tattered remains of his favorite Camp Half Blood T-shirt. His and Annabeth's only hope was for Percy to hold out long enough until help arrived.

"No," Percy croaked out, "Bob, I'm sorry I failed you. Please protect Annabeth."

It took all his effort, but Percy raised Riptide and got into a fighting stance. If he was going to go down, he was going to go down fighting. The arai screeched with rage and charged at Percy.

He had thought about death before. Going out in a blaze of glory and killing the monster that had managed to bring him down as one last act of defiance. In reality, it was nothing like that. Percy became overwhelmed in a matter of seconds. He had sliced an arai, and rolled to avoid the claws of another. His victory was short lived as he was tackled by four particularly bulky arai.

The monster's pinned him to the ground and their kin moved to secure his appendages. Three to each of his arms as well as three to his legs, securing the Son of Poseidon's appendages and holding him place.

During the scuffle, Riptide had flown from his grasp and landed a few feet away, right in front of an arai significantly larger than the rest. The arai carefully picked up Riptide by it's hilt and began to saunter toward him.

Percy became wide eyed when he saw the arai begin to make his way toward him. With renewed adrenaline, Percy began to frantically move his body, desperately trying to free a limb so he could fight back. He could feel his right arm begin to give way but the sharp teeth from a crunching arai forced him to submit.

Percy could only stare fearfully as the arai came his way. It would only be a matter of time until it was upon him, and in that short time, Percy saw his life unfold before him. He saw himself looking up toward his mother who was cradling him in her arms, he saw himself as a twelve year old standing up to Gabe and Ares, to the moment he held the sky, finding a golden eyed Luke in a sarcophagus, and finally, the fearful yet accepting look that graced Luke's face when he took his own life to stop Kronos.

" _Thisssss is what you've had coming Jackson"_ , the aria hissed together in a horrifying symphony, " _Tonight Tartarus will taste the blood of the sea god!"_

The aria wasted no time and brought Riptide down, piercing Percy right in the chest, slightly to left of where his heart would be.

Percy let out a blood curdling scream. He had been nicked and stabbed before... it came with the job title of demigod. But this was unlike anything he had ever felt before in his life. After a few seconds he couldn't even scream, his own blood had started to seep into the back of his throat, choking him.

In Percy's uselessness he slightly raised his head to get one last look at the monster who had finally bested him. He could see the sick and twisted joy in its eye as it pulled Riptide out of his chest to deliver the finishing blow. However, it never came as a wooden spear emerged through the chest of the arai.

Percy's tired his best to smile, but was only met with mind numbing pain and a bubble of blood spilling out of his mouth. His desperate plea for help had finally been answered.

"Sweep!"

Bob's broom spear swung around, causing the arai to squawk in panic at the sight of the new arrival. Many tried to flee, but the amnesia plagued Titan quickly put an end to that with his broom and acid like windex sprayer.

After the aria fled or finally succumbed to the might of Bob, the Titan turned to look at Percy. He had a smile on his face, pleased with the job he had done. But that smile quickly evaporated at the sight of Percy who was lying on the ground in a puddle of his own blood, desperately trying to apply pressure to the hole in his chest.

"Oh no," Bob whispered.

Bob made his way toward Percy with reckless abandon. He had dropped his broom spear and windex and slid to a stop right next to Percy. Bob gently cradled his friend's head in in his lap.

"Bob…" Percy murmured, "You came back."

"I almost didn't come back at all. Small Bob convinced me to."

Small Bob poked his head out of Bob's overall's and gave a sad meow at the sight of the mortally wounded demigod.

"Thank you" Percy croaked " If not for you, we wouldn't have made it this far."

"Don't worry" Bob said desperately, "We will save you and fix you up."

Bob then placed his right hand onto Percy's chest. Earlier, that had fixed his scratches and fully healed Annabeth's sprained ankle, but nothing happened this time. It seemed that the demigod's luck had finally run out.

"Why doesn't it work!" Bob said as he started to become frustrated as Percy's wounds wouldn't close, "It always works!"

Percy then looked up. His sea green eyes had become dimmer, as if the life had truly begun to leave him.

"It's okay Bob" Percy murmured "You saved Annabeth. I don't think saving me is in the cards."

"What do you mean?" Bob asked with a sad look on his face "You cannot die Percy! Annabeth needs you, and so do your friends! Your mother will need help raising your little sister!"

Those words stung Percy, almost more than the hole in his chest did. He had been gone for at least eight months, plenty of time for his mom to become pregnant and potentially be near the final trimester of a pregnancy.

Tears started to form in Percy's eyes. He would never get to meet his baby sister, never get to grow old with Annabeth, laugh with his friends aboard the _Argo II,_ never get to ride Blackjack again, and he wouldn't get to see his father.

"Please Bob. Do me one last thing" Percy mumbled out as he grabbed the Titan's hand.

"Anything" the Titan said as he gripped his friend's hand tightly.

"Get Annabeth."

In a flash, Bob was gone, searching for the daughter of Athena. Less than a minute later, Annabeth had been secured. It seemed Bob had told her the situation as she was crying on the way over. She dropped down on Percy's right, and Bob kneeled on Percy's left.

"Percy?" Annabeth said through the tears.

"It's me Wise Girl" Percy said through ragged breaths.

"I swear to gods if you die…" Annabeth began but Percy cut her off.

"I don't have long." Percy snaked his hand through hers "Promise me something."

"No we're gonna get out of this. We can make it to…"

"Annabeth!"

That shut the blonde demigod up. Tears began to flow more freely from the blonde's clouded eyes. Percy was glad she couldn't see him like this though. He wanted to remember him for what he was, the lively and loyal son of Poseidon who'd do anything for those he cared about.

"Annabeth after this is all over and you've taken time to mourn… Promise me you'll be happy."

Annabeth tried to argue, "Percy I can't... not without you."

He squeezed her hand tighter, "You can do anything Wise Girl. Don't let my death be the end of your life. Be happy."

She was quietly crying. He could tell she was torn and that this was killing her. He had made the promise to her that they would always be family. He had spoken too soon.

"I'll- I'll try" Annabeth stammered out.

A small, wistful smile graced Percy's face, "I know you can."

Percy's hand began to loosen inside Annabeth's hand and his breathing began to slow. He could feel death closing in. It was only a matter of time until Thanatos was here to take him.

Percy slowly pivoted his head toward the blackened sky above him, his eyes searching for any kind of light, any chance to see the world above once again. He knew it was fool hardy, especially since his one miracle for the day had been used already.

"So… this is what it feels like." His voice barely a whisper.

With that, a final breath escaped from the mouth of Percy Jackson and his sea green eyes went dim.

* * *

 _ **-Bob the Titan-**_

Nothing but the crying of Annabeth Chase filled the hell that was Tartarus. Bob moved to comfort her and lead her away from the body of her now late lover. He knew that the next step was to bring her to Damasen and restore the demigod's eyesight.

Once she was a respectful distance away, Bob made his way over to his fallen friend to honor him. He kneed on the ground and a silver tear escaped his eyes.

"Perseus Jackson" Bob whispered as he stared at the motionless body, "You gave me a new life. I may not have asked for it, but you gave me a chance to start anew and to right my wrongs…"

Bob then looked at Percy's now cold face.

"Now I will give you that chance."

He placed his hand onto Percy's forehead and the son of Poseidon began to disintegrate. The ashes that were his body rose up into the pitch black sky of Tartarus, until they were no longer in sight.

"Take this time to heal my" Bob said aloud "In time, you will be joined by others who share the same mindset as you. Those who long to make the world a better place, just as you did. Learn from your mistakes."

Bob took one last look toward the dark sky.

"You will find little joy in your life...but with luck, you'll find the strength to do what needs to be done."

 _"Kill the boy. And let the man be born."_

* * *

 _One Week After the Fall of Gaea…_

 _Nine Months Before the Battle of Beacon_

* * *

 ** _-Leonidas Valdez-_**

It had been a week since the end of the Giant War and the demigod camps had come to an alliance. As a show of good faith from Camp Half Blood, engineers from Cabin Six and Nine traveled to the west coast and assisted their sister camp with the repairs on New Rome.

However, not all of the residents of Cabin's Six and Nine made the trip to New Rome. Leo Valdez, the head counselor of the Hephaestus Cabin, instead choose to stay at Camp Half-Blood, as it was a time of mourning for them.

The day was August eighteenth, and the Seven, now Six, and fellow demigods had gathered at Camp Half-Blood to mourn and celebrate what would have been the seventeenth birthday of Percy Jackson. Some of the younger campers had believed he was the greatest hero to ever live. After seeing Percy in action during their trip across the world, Leo was pretty sure he agreed with them.

Annabeth had asked Leo to build a monument to remember Percy with and it was maybe the hardest thing he had ever worked on in his whole life.

The statue was made out of a slick white marble, chiseled and crafted to take the appearance of Camp Half Blood's greatest hero. The memorial sat on a small hill overlooking the sea, almost as if the large body of water was calling to the statue.

Percy's statue looked so much like him it was almost uncanny. The statue was 'dressed' in regular jeans and his Camp Half-Blood t-shirt. In Percy's left hand was Riptide and in his right was a trident which stood about a foot taller than him.

Leo had spared not a single detail when it came to Percy's statue. On his right wrist you could see his SPQR tattoo, trident, and his one line of service. Around Percy's neck were his camp beads, four in total.

At the base of the hill leading up to Percy's statue, a pathway of literal silver dollar sea shells had been constructed. Percy's friend Grover had enchanted the land around Percy's statue to make sure the grass would never overgrow and would be kept at a perfect length for eternity.

Finally, in front of the son of Poseidon's monument was a small plaque which read,

* * *

 _He would have sacrifice the World_

 _To save a friend_

 _He sacrificed himself_

 _To save the World_

 _Rest in Peace_

 _Perseus Jackson_

 _The Savior of Olympus_

* * *

Leo took a seat near Piper and Jason and he took everything in as the proceedings began.

Percy's mortal family was in attendance and they sat in the very front. His mother had been crying a lot and Percy's step-father was there trying to comfort her. Leo had never met Percy's mom, but he had heard from Annabeth that she was truly incredible. Her black dress could not conceal her baby bump though, and he wondered if Percy new he was going to be a big brother.

The Hunters of Artemis were in attendance as well. They had arrived the day before and Thalia immediately asked Jason where Annabeth was. The younger Grace sibling motioned her toward Cabin Six and the Lieutenant of Artemis took off, most likely to comfort her. The Hunter's stood respectfully and watched the proceedings while Thalia sat near Annabeth.

The last to arrive were the representatives from Camp Jupiter. Hazel, Frank, and Reyna had to settle the Roman campers back in, thus meaning Frank and Reyna had been burning the midnight oil when it came to their paperwork, and Hazel owed Gwen a huge favor since the retired legionnaire agreed to babysit Dakota whenever he went on one of his Kool-Aid induced highs.

Only three people spoke at Percy's shroud burning.

The first was Chiron. The aged centaur talked about Percy's character and loyalty. Claiming that he was one of the best heroes he had ever had the privilege to train. Grover had gone next. Leo was unfamiliar with the satyr. He had never really been around and Leo was surprised he was a Lord of the Wild. He had expected Grover to be more… intimidating?

However, Leo didn't really listen too hard to Grover and Chiron's speeches. He couldn't help it after all. His ADHD was making it impossible to sit still and he could only spin the small screwdriver he kept on his person so fast. So along with his spinning, he stole glances at his friends.

Piper looked like an emotionally wreck. Her and Percy had actually grown close aboard the Argo II when the raven hair boy apologized to her for well… being a bad friend. It wasn't everyday he had gotten possessed by an evil spirit that made him try to kill her and her boyfriend. After that, a solid friendship had developed between the two. They would throw food at one another and Piper and Percy would ride skateboards around on the Argo II's deck, with one always trying to outdo the other.

Next to her, Jason was expressionless. He hadn't cried or mourned in days, but that's just how the son of Jupiter was. He would shut people out and train every day. He rarely talked to anyone, including the Seven, Reyna, Nico, and Hedge. Leo knew Jason like the back of his hand and the son of Hephaestus could tell that Jason blamed himself for what happened.

However, Leo's attention was drawn to Annabeth as she made her way up to speak. The daughter of Athena was quiet for a second until she had finally gathered her wits.

The speech was beautiful. It had highlighted the moments between their friendship and it showed just how loved Percy was. She then started to work her way into their final moments together. Leo and the rest of the seven had already heard the story of how Percy saved Annabeth with the help of Bob, but she told everyone of Percy's sacrifice.

Her voice began to quiver and Annabeth took a second to collect herself. One deep breath later and she delivered her closing line.

"Before he died, Percy told me to take time and mourn." Annabeth said to the crowd "But he also told me to find happiness again."

"Percy used to say he lived his life one day at a time, and I think he'd want us to do the same." Annabeth said as she smiled lightly "And I think it's our duty now to live our lives so that he'll never be forgotten."

With that, Annabeth concluded her speech and made her way toward the torch that Chiron was now holding. He passed it down to her with a nod of his head and Annabeth reluctantly accepted. She moved toward the beautiful emerald shroud embroidered with a black trident on it. Annabeth paused for a second, taking a deep breath, before lowering the torch and setting the shroud ablaze.

Instead of the smell of smoke coming from the shroud, a beautiful ocean breeze was felt and the smell of the sea swept upon the hill.

* * *

 _The sound of battle raged, the clash of steel and screams of pain from the fallen filled the air. Leo stood amongst a blackened earth, charred by some type of fire. He looked around frantically trying to figure out where he was. The demi-god began to move, knowing that it was dangerous to stay in one spot too long._

 _He was on high alert, as the sounds of war drew closer whichever direction he went. Shadows seemed to swirl around Leo, and it felt as though they were alive and he was being watched. However, he kept moving, until he came across the charred remains of a giant stone structure._

 _Leo could only imagine what this structure looked like in its prime. The majority of the magnificent towers that encircled the courtyard had been destroyed - either charred with some type of fire or knocked down by brute force. Only one tower remained though, and that was the central tower located in the middle of the ruined castle._

 _With nowhere else to go, Leo began to approach the lonely structure. He passed a burning hall. He glanced inside as he walked, seeing nothing but a few burnt tables and kitchen which looked like it had exploded from the inside out._

 _Finally, he made it to the base of the tower, only to see his way was slightly obstructed by the remains of crashed elevator. The elevator sparked Leo's interest. What kind of castle had an elevator?_

 _He began to examine the wreckage, curious to see if what he was looking for was there. More modern elevators had escape hatches and more importantly, ladder rungs which could be used to climb up or down from inside the elevator shaft in case of an emergency. He was pleasantly surprised to find there was in fact, a hatch, even though it was deformed and mangled from the crash. More importantly, he could see ladder rungs. However, the way in was blocked by other debris which had fallen down the shaft. It was moveable, but he would need a large enough force going at a high enough speed to effectively move it._

 _Before Leo could formulate a plan, he heard a growl behind him. He had heard the growls' of Cyclopses, Hellhounds, Earthborn, and even Giants, but this growl made Leo's skin crawl. He slowly turned around, feeling the warmth grow in his hand as he began to form a fireball, and his eyes widened at the monster before._

 _It looked like a bear, but if a bear and a Hellhound had meet up on Tinder and failed to use protection. The bear looked like a shadow had come to life, with dark crimson eyes, ferocious teeth and claws, along with bone armor and spikes, making the beast somewhat resemble Doomsday from that gods-awful Batman Vs. Superman movie._

 _Leo tried to move backwards to create some space between him and the bear, but his back was soon met by the flimsy metal of the crashed elevator. The bear let out a roar at Leo and began to charge and his eyes widened._

 _The bear was upon him like a flash, its long legs covering the ground surprisingly quickly. Leo hit the deck quickly as the bear swiped its clawed, meaty paw at him. He pushed himself up quickly, thankful for the extra burpee's that Reyna made him do during his combat training._

 _He lit his whole right arm on fire and jumped toward the bear, ready to give it a brutal flaming fist to the face. However, Leo misinterpreted the intelligence of the bear. The beast was quick to recover from its missed swipe, and using its momentum swung around and smashed Leo, sending the Latino boy soaring and eventually tumbling through the wreckage of the elevator door._

 _Leo groaned as he tried to recollect himself. Nothing felt like it was broken, but he sure as hell would be feeling that one later. A blur of red began to cover his eye and he realized that his forehead had a gash in it. He whipped it away with his sleeve, knowing that would have to do for now._

 _His reprieve was short lived, as the ground began to shake. The demon bear was stampeding toward him, and if Leo didn't move quickly, he'd become a bear chew toy._

 _He sprung to his feet and peered up. He was underneath the hatch, but he wouldn't be able to reach it without a boost. Luckily, he had a few tricks up his sleeve. Leo closed his eyes and focused his power into his hands, accumulating energy._

 _The bear was barreling toward him, its jaws stretched wide open, ready to bite his face off. Instead, the bear was met with two bursts of intense heat, as Leo used his control over fire to launch himself into the air and straight up into the elevator shaft._

 _Leo had never liked to use this little party trick of his. Mostly because it was very new and if done wrong, was incredibly dangerous to himself and everyone around him. Nothing like a trial by fire to find out if you can perform. However, he couldn't fly forever like Jason could._

 _He made it about half way up the elevator shaft before he started to feel fatigued. He angled himself toward the ladder rungs inside the shaft, and dropped his focus. The flames from his hands stopped spitting out fire and as gravity took hold of him, he grabbed onto a ladder rung with both hands, careful not to fall off. He took a second to catch his breath, and then began to work his way up the rest of the elevator shaft._

 _After a few silent and sweaty minutes of climbing, Leo finally made it to the top and the sight before him made his blood run cold and his heart stop. Before him and staggered around the room, laid the bloodied, beaten, and disfigured forms of the Seven who had defeated Gaea._

 _Frank was in the back with Hazel leaning against him. The biggest and physically strongest of the group had four spears in his back, his body spasming slightly from the physical damage done to his body. Hazel was kneeled upon the earth. Her spatha, lodged through the center of her chest, keeping her upright._

 _In front of them was Annabeth and Piper. The blonde was sprawled on the ground, face down. Her gray eyes had become dull and lifeless, and Leo understood why when he saw her back riddled with arrows. Piper, who was on her back, hadn't fared much better. She had slash marks across her body and a pool of her own blood forming around her._

 _Finally, Jason and Percy were closest to Leo. Jason was lying face up on the ground. His stomach had a brutal slash across his right side and the most horrifying thing was the bloody thing that was supposed to be his right eye. Percy laid on the ground, the fragments of a celestial bronze weapon around him and a sword in the center of his chest made of… glass?_

 _Leo's brow had begun to sweat and his breath hitched as he looked at his friends. He scrambled toward Percy who was the closest. Leo pressed his fingers to Percy's neck, searching for even the faintest pulse. He almost jumped out of his skin when Percy's hand snapped up and grabbed on to Leo's wrist._

 _Percy looked into Leo's eyes, and his voice was ragged through the pain, "You could've… saved us."_

 _The small amount of life that was in Percy's eyes disappeared and Leo could only be described as distressed. He looked up from Percy and looked out to the view the tower offered, only to see a city being burned to the ground and a gigantic roar filling the air. Leo froze at the sight, but then he heard a voice whisper:_

 _"Kill the boy. And let the man be born."_

* * *

Leo gasped awake as he knocked tools off his workbench inside of Bunker Nine. He staggered around, trying to catch his breath. He was wide eyed and scared, unsure of where he was. He leaned against a wall, desperately trying to catch his breath while in search of something. His eyes finally locked onto what he was looking for. Leo stumbled across the bunker and moved the papers that were now covering one of his most important possessions, his Archimedes Sphere.

Leo grabbed it and started to speak to it, "Initiate scan. Is it- is it the brain? The heart?"

He held the sphere in his hand, waiting for the results to come out of the device. After what felt like an eternity, the small almost fortune cookie looking paper popped out the results and Leo was quick to grab it.

His eyes scanned over the paper, "An anxiety attack? Me?!"

Leo ripped the paper and he started to slide down the wall he was leaning against. He tried to take a deep breath and process the information he had received, but he was all over the place.

This nightmare had been nothing new to the demigod. In fact, it had been recurring ever since they had defeated Gaea. Percy's death had hit them hard, and this nightmare was what had pushed Leo over an edge he didn't even know he had.

Annabeth had told him once they had completed one Great Prophecy, the next popped up almost immediately after and took less than a year to see fulfilled. With Camp Half Blood's resident Oracle, Rachel Elizabeth Dare, out of commission due to the fact that the god, Apollo, was nowhere to be seen, no new Great Prophecy had been given. Many of the veteran demigods at camp saw it is a headache, but Leo saw it as an incoming threat. And for once, he had time to prepare for whatever threat was coming.

Leo finally having regained control of his breathing picked himself up from the floor and went back over to his workbench where his projects laid.

The only good thing about that nightmare was that it gave him a way to prepare. He had only finished his project for Jason so far: a suit of armor that was tough, lightweight, and had a characteristic similar to many magical objects. In order to make the armor more accessible, it was stored inside of a thin gold necklace with a lightning bolt on it. The beautiful thing about it was that the armor could only be activated by 1.21 gigawatts, or more common for a son of Jupiter, a bolt of lightning. Leo knew Jason would love it.

Leo had plans for a multitude of more helpful inventions for the rest of the seven. An armor that Frank could wear that would cover his entire body whenever he morphed into some type of animal, an electronic wristband for Hazel which would allow her to be the only one to pick up her spatha without getting tazed, along with other things that could protect the Seven from the fate that befell them during his nightmare.

The son of Hephaestus put the down the blue paper he had drew his designs on and glanced over to the project he had finished the day they had returned from Greece. Currently suspended in the air by two metal clamps, was a shield.

Unlike the countless other projects he and his siblings had undertaken, this shield was made of a special metal known as Olympian Steel. Unlike Celestial Bronze, Imperial Gold, or Stygian Iron, Olympian Steel was the toughest and most durable metal of them all. It was rumored to be able to withstand any blow and never scratch.

Leo hadn't received much of the precious metal. It had been a gift from his father as a way to say thank you for performing well in the Olympians most desperate hour. Normally, Leo would've been ecstatic to test the metal and use it for all kinds of projects, but instead of a tool to be used for science, it proved instead to be a bitter reminder of the one friend he couldn't save on the quest.

Leo hadn't told anyone about the metal and the shield that now resided in Bunker 9. He wanted it to be a reminder for himself of his failures, and not share it with the rest of the world just yet. But now, he finally felt like it was time to put it where it belonged.

He moved over to the shield and unclasped the metal hooks that suspended it in the air with one hand, making sure that his other arm was secured in leather harness on the inside of the shield. With a resounding 'clink' the hooks let go, and the son of Hephaestus steadied himself before turning to leave.

When he was almost out of the Bunker Nine doors, Leo stopped abruptly and headed straight back to his work bench. He studied his Archimedes Sphere as it rested on the table, and then pocketed it inside of his magical tool-belt.

Leo then turned on his heels, the shield on his arm, and the Archimedes Sphere tucked soundly in his belt, and began to head to camp determined to drop off the shield.

Besides Percy's shield and Jason's armor, Leo had tinkered with the Archimedes Sphere the most. Archimedes has created a truly amazing piece of work, the sphere had been able to solve advanced math equations that would've left modern mortal scientists at a loss for words. The only drawback was that the legendary mathematician was held back by the tools of his time. It hadn't taken long for Leo to fix that problem.

After a day's worth of dissecting the sphere and carefully inserting and installing the necessary motherboard, wires, and system programs, Leo had turned the sphere into an A.I. that would've given Apple and Samsung a heart attack. It could perform health scans, hack into encrypted files and satellites, and most importantly, order him a triple pepperoni pizza.

Before Leo even knew it, he had arrived at Percy Jackon's memorial. The moon was high in the sky and it illuminated the whole hill the monument was on. Leo stood in front of the statue he made and could only stare at Percy's unmoving, marble face.

"For what it's worth, I'm sorry." Leo said to the statue.

Unsurprisingly, it didn't respond.

"You tried so hard to keep us safe on the quest and every action you took was to try and help us. All I ever did was mess things up."

Leo let out a groan as the statue seemed to be glaring at him for that last sentence, "I know I didn't actually mess everything up, but it still doesn't excuse the fact I could've done better."

Leo then looked down as his shoes became very interesting and he spoke softly, "It was my fault you and Annabeth even fell into Tartarus in the first place. I should've been more careful and not charged in guns blazing. I must've stared at Hedge's old western movies for too long."

Leo then looked up at the statue, "Even though you're gone Percy, Camp Half Blood is in good hands. The best heroes of this generation are ready to keep us safe, and you can be damned sure I'll do my best to be ready for whatever comes next, and that's something I swear on the River Styx."

The sound of thunder boomed in the air, signaling that the unbreakable vow was officially made.

Leo stared at Percy's marble eyes one last time, "Thank you for everything Percy. I'll do my best to honor you and your legacy."

With that Leo moved forward to place the shield at the base of the statue, but a warm feeling began to spread throughout his body. At first it was pleasant, like sitting by a fireplace on a cold winter's night. However, things took a major turn for the worse when he glanced down at his right hand and saw that it started to break apart and turn into embers.

Leo began to panic. He tried to raise his free arm but they were long gone. He fell to the ground in shock and watched as his legs and lower body started to vanish. It then worked his way up into his stomach and eventually, his upper body.

Leo could only mutter one thing, "Motherfu-"

Before he could finish, his head and mouth were turned to cinders and floated toward the sky and the bright, shining moon above.

* * *

 ** _-Perseus Jackson-_**

 _Kill the boy. And let the man be born._

Percy sprung up with a gasp. His body desperately taking in gasps of air. He could feel himself lying on his back and the familiar smell of asphalt and garbage filled his nose. He began to sit up slowly, taking in air at a rapid pace. At first, he thought he was back in New York, but then the memories of his… death came racing back to him.

He reached a hand up underneath his shirt and felt for any kind of wound - praying to all the Gods that it had only been a terrible demi-god dream.

Percy held his breath as he roamed his hand across his chest to where his own blade had pierced his chest. He let out a sob as he felt an unfamiliar outline, as well as the tenderness of an open wound on his chest, maybe an inch or two to the right of where his heart would be. He removed his hand from underneath his shirt and gazed upon his fingertips, the appendages covered in pieces of dried, flaky blood from a wound not yet closed.

He had died. He knew first hand being a half-blood was dangerous and that most of the time, it got you killed in painful, nasty ways. But how he went out… He shivered. Getting stabbed with your own sword while trying to save your girlfriend was a shit way to go.

Percy's eyes widened and he groaned at the thought of his girlfriend, or his now ex-girlfriend? If he ever saw Annabeth again she would strangle him for being so stupidly brave. Before he died, he had told her to move on and not waste her life because of him. So if he wasn't dead now, then where the Hades was he?

Percy sat up and took in his surroundings. He seemed to be in the back alley of a city… maybe he was somehow in New York? He shakily began to rise but as he did, he accidentally stepped on something.

"Gah!" A voice sounded off from under him.

Caught off guard by the yell, Percy sprang forward and grabbed Riptide in his pocket, but did not uncap it. He tried to calm himself, but Percy was frantic. He had died once already, and he had absolutely no interest in dying a second time.

Finally, Percy's eyes locked on to what had made the sound. At first he almost didn't recognize the curly mess of dark brown hair in front of him, but eventually he came to the realization that he knew who this person was. Percy almost let out a cry of relief. In front of him was Leo Valdez, one of the Seven demi-gods destined to destroy Gaea and more importantly, a familiar face.

"Leo?" Percy said lightly, his voice a little bit shaky.

The Latino boy shook out his stomped on hand, trying his best to relieve the sharp pain he probably felt. However, Leo stopped as he finally seemed to register the voice that had just spoke to him. His head shot up and he locked eyes with Percy.

Leo sprung up, almost tripping over himself in the process, but he quickly regained his balance. He then quickly closed the small gap between him and Percy, and pulled the Son of Poseidon into a deep hug.

At first, Percy was shocked by Leo's hug. He had never been close friends with the self-proclaimed 'Super Sized McShizzle' and looking back, Percy had been nothing short of an a-hole to him. He had blamed Leo for destroying New Rome and just being problematic on the quest. If anything, Percy had been a bad friend to Leo.

Percy had been caught off guard by Leo's hug and his arms were loose while the young Latino boy hugged him tightly. A wave of emotion crashed into Percy. He was here, alive, and with someone he actually recognized. Maybe there was a chance to get home after all?

Leo pulled off from the hug first his arms reached up and placed on Percy's shoulders, "Dude how in the Hades are you still alive?"

Percy winced at the wording, "I… I don't know. The last thing I remember was saying goodbye to Annabeth and everything just seemed to… end. Almost like I was sleeping."

Leo nodded his head slowly as he tried to understand, "I see… any chance you got turned to ashes?"

Percy went wide eyed at Leo, "What?! No! At least… I don't think so? Again, I only remember dying. I have no clue what happened to my body afterword, other than it somehow being here."

"Gotcha" Leo said as he raised a hand to his chin and started to pace back in forth, "I was turned to ash at your gravesite as I was paying my respects. Maybe it's somehow connected?"

The son of Poseidon could only shrug his shoulders, "I don't know. The only thing that makes sense right now is that _nothing_ makes sense. I should be dead."

Before they could discuss it anymore, the unmistakable sound of a gunshot rang out, followed with the sound of glass shattering.

The two initially flinched at the sound, but after the two were quick to engage and become hyper aware of their surroundings.

"So do we run toward the dangerous noise or away from it and toward safety?" Leo asked sarcastically.

Percy shot the younger boy a look and Leo raised his arms in defense.

"It was just a joke… dam."

Without a word, the son of Poseidon took off toward the exit of the alley way and toward the sound of danger, with Leo not too far behind.

When they arrived they saw a pale girl with short black hair that faded to red as it went down. The girl was wearing a black long sleeved blouse that had a high collar along with red trim on her sleeves. She wore a black waist clincher with red lacing up the front along with pair of thick black stockings and black combat boots which were laced with red strings.

However, the most impressive thing about the girl was the weapon she carried. In her hands was a ten foot scythe that seemed to match the color scheme the girl had.

The scythe sent shivers down Percy's spine, as the dangerous weapon reminded him of the blade Kronos had wielded during the Second Titan War.

Before they could speak to the girl, a group of thugs dressed in black suits with red glasses emerged from what Percy guessed was a convenience store called _From Dust Till Dawn_.

Once all the thugs had emerged from the store and took up fighting stances, a man with orange hair dressed in a bowler hat, a white suit, black pants, emerged from the store. He used a cane to walk, but Percy could tell it was an accessory and not a necessity. Percy knew right away that this man was the head honcho behind whatever criminal activity was going on, .

The head honcho addressed the girl in front of them who was ready to do battle, "What's this Red? You brought some friends with you?"

The girl glanced backwards and gave them a puzzled look, but quickly turned back. Knowing that it was dangerous to take her eyes off an enemy, especially a criminal.

The thief with orange hair gave them a look of disgust before speaking again, "Too bad we're just going to have kill them along with you."

The demigods narrowed their eyes. No one was going to kill them and get away with it.

"Keep talking mouth breather," Leo called out "we'd hate to ruin your fancy eyeliner."

That earned a quick giggle from the girl in front of them and Percy smirked, but he quickly steeled himself.

The demigods quickly armed themselves.

Leo pulled his Archimedes Sphere from his tool belt and tossed it into the air, the object hovering next to him. Next, Leo pulled twin screw drivers out of his belt and threw them into the ground, the sharp points lodging into the asphalt of the road.

Percy reached into his pocket and uncapped Riptide. However, the blade he once thought he was familiar with had been replaced by something else. In his hand was a steel sword, the blade maybe a foot longer than Riptide and slightly heavier. Unlike Riptide, which had no design on the pommel and cross-guard, this blade did. The cross-guard was steel stained black, with a pair of wings spread out, and the pommel was carved out of black, sturdy oak in the shape of a stallion's mane. Along the fuller of the blade there were ancient Greek words etched into the sword. Percy gave it more than a glance, refusing to keep his attention away from the criminal longer than he had to.

Percy could hear Leo fiddling with something next to him but wasn't sure what it was. Percy wasn't sure how long he had been dead for, but last he checked, Leo wasn't such a great hand to hand fighter. Charles Beckendorf had taught him never to underestimate the children of Hephaestus. However, what surprised Percy the most was that Leo tapped a button on his watch, and the trinket grew into a full sized shield.

"You make that yourself?" Percy called over to Leo as he prepared himself for a fight.

"I did, but I actually made it for you" Leo said as he tossed the shield to Percy who caught it with one hand and slide his arm through the leather straps "Just make sure you actually use it. We don't want any more scares like the last one you pulled."

Percy rolled his eyes, "Hardy, har, har. Your concern is duly noted."

With that Percy and Leo finally readied up. Leo removed his sharpened screwdrivers from the ground and prepared for battle, and Percy got into a fighting stance with his new sword and shield.

His eyes quickly glossed over the shield Leo had given to him. The side of the shield with the straps was the color of regular steel, but the other side was painted bronze with a vertical black trident piercing through the middle of a laurel wreath. It was a pretty neat shield design, and Percy would have to thank Leo for it later, but now wasn't the time.

The man with the bowler cap looked between the three of them, more than likely thinking that this rag tag group were nothing more than kids wanting to play hero.

"Okaaaay", the head honcho with the orange hair said "Get them!"

The thugs rushed at the three teenagers. Leo attracted two of the thugs attention when he leaped into the fray, showing off an elite level of screwdriver attack against the thugs swords that Percy didn't even know was possible. One thug went after the girl, leaving two for Percy to put down.

Percy's cocky smirk was replaced with one of intense focus when the first thug approached him. Sword in hand, the thug moved in close and tried to slash Percy across his chest, but Percy was quick to bat it out of the way with his shield. The demigod went in for an overhead swipe, but the thug quickly raised his sword to block the attack.

The thug had played right into Percy's trap. The Son of Poseidon dropped to the ground and performed a sweeping leg kick, knocking the thug off his feet, and sending his tailbone crashing into the asphalt underneath. Before the thug could pick himself back up, Percy launched a swift kick to his head, leaving the thug incapacitated and seeing stars.

The second thug was much more reckless than the first. The thug went for an overhead blow slashing down at Percy. The son of Poseidon rolled backwards, the thugs sword missing Percy by mere inches and lodging itself in the ground.

As soon as Percy was back on his feet, he saw the thug struggling to pull his sword out of the ground. The demigod planted his own blade in the ground and slid his shield off of his wrist. He winded up and flung the shield forward, the dangerous disc of Olympian Steel heading straight toward the ruffian. At that moment, the thug looked up, only to see a shield smash into the bridge of his nose, and send him flying back and crashing into a wall.

Percy's shield bounced back toward him and he caught it with his right hand and used it to snuggly place his left arm back into the straps, securing it. He pulled his new out of the ground and swung it around once or twice. The blade felt right in his hands. Riptide, while had been a familiar weapon to him, had started to become almost too light in his hands. Riptide had been the weapon of a child. This new sword was the weapon of a man.

Satisfied with the weapon, he turned andstared down the orange haired man, hoping that he would be able to give the seasoned warrior more of a challenge.

The man gazed at the hired help that had beat into a wall, and took one last puff from his cigar, "You were worth every cent. Truly you were."

The man's cigar fell from his mouth and he used his cane to squash the ignited piece of tobacco, effectively putting it out.

"Well kid you got some spunk, I'll give you that. But as much as I'd love to stick around…" the man raised his cane and the top opened, revealing a crosshair, "this is where we part ways."

Percy's eyes raised at the odd shaped weapon, but he knew better than to take any trained person with a gun lightly. He eyed the cane rifle warily, and Percy wasn't entirely sure how to proceed. Demigod's had the luxury of not having to face gun toting monsters, but the occasional angry gun wielding homeowner in the Southern United States had given demigods more than enough practice.

However the thing that concerned Percy the most was that the thug didn't have his cane gun trained on him, but on the girl with the scythe who was still locked in combat with the best thug of the bunch.

The orange haired man pulled the trigger and Percy's eyes widened. He took off sprinting towards the girl praying that he would get there.

Time seemed to slow down. The man had pulled the trigger on his cane and a bullet shot out from it. Percy called out to the girl who had just defeated her thug and she turned, her silver eyes widening at the flare like bullet the man had shot at her.

Percy got to the girl before the bullet did. He had dropped his sword and used his free hand to push the girl down behind him and used his shield to protect them from the bullet. The projectile exploded on impact, and the flames and explosive force collided against the shield and Percy could only hope it held.

Just as quickly as the explosion formed, it was gone. Percy peeked his head slightly over the shield to see that the front had become covered in soot, but otherwise remained unfazed. He turned back to the girl who had fallen over behind him.

"You okay?" Percy asked.

"Ye-yeah...I'm okay," she squeaked.

Percy held his hand out to help the girl up and she gladly accepted. They looked around for their shooter and saw that the orange haired man wasn't there and that he had started climbing a ladder onto a roof of a nearby building.

The girl then looked at the shopkeeper who had finally came out of his store and was watching in awe as the teenagers defeated the group of thugs.

"You okay if we go after him?" she asked.

The shopkeeper nodded his head swiftly in approval, probably just as eager to catch the thug as the kids were.

Percy and the girl took off for the roof. As they were running, Percy picked up his sword and called out to his demigod compadre, "Leo make sure these guys don't go anywhere!"

"You got it Percy! These guys can't get enough of Team Leo!" Leo yelled in reply as he dodged a sword swipe and stabbed the offender in the arm with his screwdriver.

Percy started to climb up the ladder after the thief. As Percy made it to the roof, the girl he saved used her scythe to fling herself up and ahead of him. Once he had finally pulled himself up, he saw that the man in bowler cap had made it to the other side of the roof.

"Hey!" the girl cried out, catching his attention.

The man stopped and turned to face towards them.

"Persistent" he mumbled under his breath.

Behind him, a Bullhead appeared and a hatch on his side opened, revealing the compartment that would carry him to safety if it all went according to plan. The man jumped in steadying himself on a bar on the inside of the ship.

"End of the line kids!" the man yelled from the inside, taunting the teenagers.

The man then pulled a red crystal from his pocket and threw it at the pair. Before it could land, Percy moved in front of the girl and used his shield to cover her, ready for the explosion that would surely follow. The man then fired another shot from his cane at the crystal, causing the massive explosion that Percy had anticipated.

However, no blast reached the shield that the two hid behind, as a blonde woman with a purple and black cape stood before them with a riding crop in her hand. With a simple flick of the wrist, the riding crop encased the explosion in purple. Percy was in awe, the last time he had seen magic like this was when he was back on Circe's island.

The woman then waved her crop again and several streaks of purple light manifested from the suspended explosion in the air and were launched back towards the ship, and struck it with a thunderous explosion.

The man with the orange hair disappeared into what Percy guessed was the cockpit, and then a woman in a red dress emerged. Unlike her compatriot who was now more than likely piloting the ship, she was carefully enough to keep her face hidden.

The two women began to duel, a deadly combination of orange fire and purple magic lit up the sky, creating a dangerous night sky. Percy and the girl in red could only watch in amazement as the two fought.

The woman in red quickly grew tired of the fight she was in. With a wave of her hand the woman in red created several blazing circles which appeared on the floor of the roof, surrounding the three.

The blonde woman was quick to understand the danger they were in. The woman in purple sent Percy and the girl flying away from the circles. The roof where they were standing on burst into flame.

Percy and the girl in red recovered quickly and Leo was quick to catch up with them. He was flicking some blood off of his screwdrivers, "You get him?"

Leo's question was answered when he saw the bullhead fly off into the night sky, with the ring leaders of the operation safely tucked away.

A few seconds later, the woman in purple landed in front of them, but before Percy or Leo could say anything, the girl in red did.

"You're a huntress! Can I have autograph!?"

 _What the fuck is a huntress?_

* * *

After the battle with the thugs, Percy, Leo, and the girl had been taken by the woman in purple to a local police station for questioning. The girl in red was taken into one interrogation room, while Percy and Leo were told to wait in another.

"Man this really isn't good," Leo said leaning back in his chair, "we should be trying to get out of here."

"Relax" Percy said "We didn't do anything wrong. If anything, we helped out tonight."

"Yeah, but don't police usually not like vigilantes?" Leo asked "Cause I'm pretty sure most heroes are hated by the police for doing that."

Before Percy could respond, the door to the interrogation room slid open and the woman in purple from earlier entered along with a man with silver hair, green pants, a green button up jacket with gold buttons, and glasses followed behind with a coffee cup in hand.

The man in green took a seat in front of Percy and Leo and placed his coffee mug on the table, while the woman stood behind him with her arms crossed and a scowl on her face.

The four sat there in silence, until Percy spoke up,

"So how does this work?" Percy asked "You talk first or we talk first?"

The man give an amused smile before speaking, "Well first, I believe we should discuss what happened tonight."

The man then pulled out a tablet with a recording of the fight playing on repeat. It showed Percy knocking out one of the thugs with his shield. It then cut to Leo beating the snot out of some thugs with his dual screwdrivers.

The man spoke again, "It's not everyday we find teenagers who take on full fledged criminals. It was very fortunate that you arrived when you did, or Ms. Rose would have been in trouble."

"Ms. Rose?" Leo asked. "Is that the girl in red with the wicked scythe?"

"Yes, the very one" the man replied.

"She was hot" Leo whispered.

" _Dude_ " Percy groaned as he elbowed Leo in the ribs.

Seeming to be the only one to understand the gravity of the situation, Percy turned back to the man and woman.

"Speaking of names," Percy said as he changed the subject, "We never got yours."

The man took the lead as he answered the question, "My name is Ozpin, but my students refer to me as Professor Ozpin or Headmaster. And the lovely lady behind me is my colleague and Deputy Head Mistress, Glynda Goodwitch."

The headmaster motioned to the woman behind him and she only stared coldly at the two. Percy could hear Leo gulp, but Percy was unwilling to back down. The woman was being stiff and cold for no reason. Why should he be polite to her if she didn't treat him the same way?

Ozpin could sense the tension in the room, and in order to try and put everyone at ease, he spoke again.

"And who might you gentlemen be? We've searched every known database on the planet for you two, and we cannot seem to find a single trace of either of you."

Leo spoke up, taking the lead, "My name is Leo Valdez." He then pointed his thumb in Percy's direction, "And that's Percy Jackson. To answer your question, we're not really from around here."

"Then please, tell us about yourselves and where you're from," Ozpin said.

Leo then looked at Percy, "Should we tell them?" he asked.

Percy paused and looked back at Leo. He turned back at Ozpin and then he spoke, "Yeah, we got nothing to lose."

"You might wanna get comfortable," Percy said. "It's a long story."

Ozpin gave a small smirk, "I've been known to be an avid fan of stories."

"Fair enough" Percy said, "But this is a long story, like ten books and maybe a couple spin offs long if it had to be put on paper."

"He's not lying" Leo added.

"I think we'll be able to handle it," Ozpin said and Percy could see Glynda give a small nod telling him to continue.

"Alright," Percy began "It all started when I accidentally vaporized my pre-algebra teacher."

About an hour later, Percy had finished telling his story. He had told them how he had found out he was a half-blood, went on quests, battled against Gods and Titans, the new quest to stop Gaea. However, he didn't tell them about his death. If anything, he still hadn't come to terms with it himself and he doubt two professors would believe him either. Gods and Titans and Primordials were one thing, but returning from the dead was a whole other can of worms.

Leo had caught on when they approaching Percy's death and took the story from there. He explained how they had traveled to Greece and won their battle with the Gods against the Giants and Gaea, and the problem with the oracle they were having now.

After that, Percy and Leo explained how they woke up in the middle of an alley with no clue as to how they actually got there. Their story was sketchy at best, and they weren't sure the pair of adults in front of them would believe a single part of it..

After they finally finished talking, Ozpin removed his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose. The man looked exasperated from all the information he had taken in and was probably suffering from overload.

"So let me get this straight," he said, "you are children of gods, who rule over the world?"

"Pretty much," Leo said as he fiddled with his tool belt, adjusting it to fit more snuggly.

Ozpin put his glasses back on, "Prove it to me."

"Why?" Percy asked, "Was what we told you not enough?"

Goodwitch then spoke up, "You make very bold claims young man. It's hard to find a story of that caliber to be believable."

Percy gave a frown and turned towards Leo, "You wanna go first or should I?"

"I'll go," Leo said. "I'm gonna show em why the call me hot stuff back home."

With that, Leo held up his hand and a fireball formed in it. He began to toss it back in forth like a regular ball, Ozpin stared at Leo, his eyes widening a bit in curiosity, while Glynda took a step back, her mouth agape.

Leo tossed the fireball into the air and willed it to disappear.

"How do we know that just isn't a semblance?" Goodwitch asked.

Leo glanced at Percy, "What the hell is a semblance?"

Percy just shrugged his shoulders and turned back toward the older people in front of them, hoping for an explanation.

"Amazing" Ozpin said as he whispered under his breath.

Percy heard him and raised an eyebrow. After a few seconds of awkward silence and the demigod realizing the man in front of him wasn't going to answer their question, he took it as his opportunity to show off.

"Alright, guess it's my turn," Percy said.

Percy focused his eyes on Ozpin's coffee cup. He felt a familiar tug in his gut, and when he raised his hand the coffee in Ozpin's cup followed his commands.

"Incredible," Ozpin muttered as he watched Percy send the coffee all around the room.

Percy then commanded the coffee to return to his mug and it did. The coffee stopped moving and it looked as if nothing had happened to it."

"As a child of the Sea God, I have control over water. I can even talk to fish and horses, but that's a little less important," Percy said as he stopped himself before he started rambling.

Ozpin sat in silence, more than likely to collect his thoughts before speaking again.

"The abilities you gentlemen posses are truly incredible," Ozpin praised "If what you say is true, it seems you are in need of education and guidance of this world if you are able to do whatever it is you were sent here to do. My academy can give you the opportunity to do just that."

"Is that an offer?" Leo asked.

"Yes it is" Ozpin answered "And I think it's in your best interest to accept."

Leo glanced over to Percy, "You've never steered me wrong before Percy. I'll follow your lead on this."

Percy let out a huff of air. He hated having to make serious career decisions especially when they affected other people. Okay time to pull out his inner Annabeth and think rationally.

If they accepted, that would mean a place to live, food to eat, and a place to sleep. The downside would be they'd have to study, give their time and loyalty to people they didn't know with agendas they weren't sure they agreed with. However if they _didn't_ accept, they would be on their own and free to make their own decisions, masters of their own destiny. The downside to that would be they would become desperate. No money, no food, no roof over their heads, and little to no knowledge of where they even were. Desperation breeds criminal activity and that was not what Percy wanted him or Leo to get involved in. The choice was simple.

"Alright, we're in," Percy answered with confidence.

"Excellent!" Ozpin said as he rose from his seat, "I will be seeing you two bright and early tomorrow for initiation then. The bull head station is right around the corner from here."

"Oh-uh… thank you sir," Percy said as he got up from his chair. "We'll see you tomorrow then."

And with that Percy stuck out his hand and hoped handshakes were a thing on this planet. He fears were quelled when Ozpin stuck his hand out and shook Percy's hand and then Leo's. Once they were done, the demigods got up and left the interrogation room, and began to make their way to the bullhead station.

As soon as they were out ear shot, Glynda spoke, "What are you thinking Ozpin? I've known you long enough to know when you start scheming."

"Well Glynda," Ozpin said "if what those two said was true, we may have just found our ace in the hole."

* * *

 _The Next Day…_

* * *

Percy and Leo were aboard the bullhead flying toward the famed Beacon Academy. His hatred of flying never left, as he his death grip on the windowsill was unwavering. He was still nervous that Zeus would blow him out of the sky even though he wasn't on Earth.

Percy's ADHD had finally gotten to him and he needed to move around. He told Leo that he was going to stretch his legs and go for a stroll. Leo just muttered an "uh-huh" to him because he was occupied checking out the view below them.

Percy began walking and got lost in thought. So much had happened in the 24 hours. In fact, he had no clue how long he had even been dead for. Leo said it had been two weeks since the fall of Gaea, so maybe it had been three weeks since he died in Tartarus? Timelines gave him a headache.

Percy was taken out of his thoughts when he felt himself bump into someone. The person gave out a small squeak and as they were knocked to the floor.

"Oh schist!" Percy said as he looked down, "I'm so sorry. Are you alr-."

Percy stopped, on the ground in front of him was the girl in red he had fought with against the thugs the night before.

"You?"

The girl looked up and squeaked out a "Yeah, me."

"I'm sorry," Percy said as he held out his hand for the girl. "I wasn't paying attention, but I don't pay attention a lot."

The girl giggled and she accepted Percy's hand. He pulled her up and he realized just how short she was. The girl was about 5'2", and only reached to Percy's shoulders. She was short compared to his own 6'1".

The girl then stumbled on her words, "Th...Thanks for helping me out last night. You saved my life a few times."

"Don't mention it," Percy said with a smile on his face. "It's Ruby right?"

She looked at him with shock, "You know my name?"

Percy nodded, "Ozpin told me last night. I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

A blush lightly graced Ruby's cheeks, "Er- well thank you? Sorry I'm bad at... talking?"

He chuckled at her nervousness, "It's fine. And just to make things even, my name is Percy Jackson."

"It's uh- it's nice to meet you Percy!" She forced out.

Percy just gave her a warm smile, "Would you by chance want to meet my friend Leo? He was with us last night when we beat back bowler hat."

She didn't say anything, but she quickly nodded her head and Percy led the way.

Percy led Ruby back to where Leo was. He was still looking out the bullhead's window and looking at the view.

"Hey Leo!" Percy called to him and waved for him to come over.

Leo stopped what he was doing, turned towards Percy and started walking over.

"Hey Perce," he said. Then he looked at Ruby and his widened.

"Uhh who is…" Leo cleared his throat, "Who is this?"

"This is Ruby Rose, she was with us last night when we fought off those thugs who attacked the shop."

"Oh yeah I remember now!" Leo said, "The girl with the wicked scythe and kicked major booty! You were so awesome last night!"

"You… you think I'm awesome?" Ruby asked.

"Well yeah!" Leo said. "You made those guys look dumber than Percy in math class."

"Watch it Valdez" Percy said with a smirk "Just because you got good at fighting with screwdrivers doesn't mean I won't beat you up."

Leo started laughing and Ruby began to giggle as well.

Ruby then started to speak, "Well it was really nice getting to meet you Percy, but I have to met my sister before we land!"

Then she turned to Leo, "and... it was awesome meeting you too Leo," she with a big toothy smile.

Ruby then took off in blur of rose petals and speed away from Percy and Leo.

"What the Hades was that?" Percy asked looking at the rose petals.

"I don't know man," Leo said. "But I think I'm in love."

Percy let out a laugh, "Calm down there Repair Boy. You just met her."

Leo then turned towards Percy, "Dude did you see her? She was prettier than Piper!"

Percy just smiled. Leo was definitely star struck.

"She's not my type and besides, she's too young for me. But she might be the same age as you though," Percy said, elbowing Leo in the ribs.

"Really!?" Leo asked with a huge smile on his face. "I'm gonna have to put the ol' Valdez charm on her."

Before Percy could reply, they heard the sound of a T.V. and they turned to look at it.

They saw on the screen a mugshot of the thief that had gotten away:

 _Last night's robbery was led by the nefarious criminal Roman Torchwick, who continues to evade authorities. If you have any information on his whereabouts, please contact the Vale Police Department. Back to you Lisa._

"Huh, so that's his name" Leo said, "But what kind of idiot names their kid Roman? Greek would've been way better."

Percy laughed at Leo before turning his attention back to the T.V.

The mugshot then changed to a picture of the woman that Percy could assume was 'Lisa' and next to her was a picture of animal eared demonstrators holding signs saying, "We're not animals!" Followed by an image of a logo with a growling red wolf's head with three scratch marks.

The Lisa lady then spoke:

 _Thank you Cyril. In other news, this Saturday's Fanaus Civil Rights protest turned dark when members of the White Fang disrupted the ceremony. The once peaceful organization…_

The feed was cut off and replaced with a hologram of Professor Goodwitch.

 _"Hello and welcome to Beacon. You are among a privileged few who have received the honor of being selected to our prestigious academy! Our world is experiencing an incredible time of peace, and as future Huntsmen and Huntresses, it is your duty to uphold it. You have demonstrated the courage to needed for such a task, and now it is our turn to provide you with the knowledge and training to protect our world."_

With that Professor Goodwitch disappeared, and many oh's and ah's were heard from aboard the ship. Many students had rushed towards the windows and were looking out and down toward amazing view below. Percy and Leo walked over and stared out and Percy could only let out a whistle.

They could see the whole city from where they were in the sky.

"It feels like we're back on the Argo II," Percy said looking down.

"Yeah… it does," Leo said sadly.

Percy clasped a hand on Leo shoulder's "Don't worry man. Maybe we'll find a way back home someday, but for now let's just take it all in stride."

"How are you so calm about this? Don't you miss everyone back home?" Leo said as he glanced toward Percy.

Percy frowned a bit, "Of course, and I want to see them again more than ever. But it might not just be in the cards."

The son of Poseidon then had a downcast look on his face, "I told Annabeth before I died to find happiness and to not let her life end with the death of mine. It'll take her time the same way it'll take time for me. But someday I'll get back to living a full life, I just know it."

Leo nodded his head. There was truth in what Percy said, but if he ever made his way back, Piper, Jason, and Coach Hedge would beat him till he turned black and blue.

A loud ding rang out throughout the cabin of the bullhead, signaling that they had finally landed. The two demigods turned around and Percy slung an arm around Leo's shoulder.

"Don't worry man, there's only good things in the future. I know it" Percy said as he tried to put Leo's mind at ease.

The door to the bullhead popped open and while many of the students cheered at the sight of their new home, Leo had a much different reaction.

His blood ran cold as he recognized the castle that had become the setting of his worst nightmare.

* * *

 _ **This is son44 signing off. Until next time folks, and happy reading.**_


	2. We Make New Friends

**Chapter Two of the Heroes of Remnant. Re-Write Published as of 5/22/19**

 **Song of the Chapter: No More Surprises - Alan Silvestri**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own anything you recognize.**

* * *

 _Two Weeks Before the Fall of Gaea_

 _Nine Months Before the Battle of Beacon_

* * *

 _ **-Leonidas Valdez-**_

"Jeez, now _that's_ a castle." Percy said as he let out long, low whistle,

Leo nodded his head in agreement, "Uh-huh."

The son of Hephaestus truly did believe that this castle was awesome. The openness of it made it so full of light and life, he never would have expected it to be an academy. From what he had understood from a pamphlet he had read on the bullhead earlier, Beacon was a school that trained teenagers to become huntsmen and huntresses. Basically kids that were the same as half bloods, but had been granted unique abilities and access to tools know as auras, semblances, and Dust.

From what he understood, an aura was basically a protective force field which covered a person from head to toe, and a semblance was a by product of unlocking one's aura. Apparently it gave the user a special power, similar to Leo's control of fire or Percy's control of water, which could be activated during the middle of fight. However, each semblance was unique to a user and didn't really seem to follow any rules. People had speculated that a warrior's semblance was a part of who they are. They believed that their personality and character defined their semblance, while others thought it was vice versa.

Semblances and aura didn't make much sense to Leo, and so he didn't care much for it. However, the one thing that did catch his eye was Dust. While many people on Remnant saw it as a tool, Leo saw it as an opportunity. Dust had an almost untapped potential as both an energy source as well as in weapon and armor making. The upgrades to his and Percy's gear as well as the tools he could make had no end.

Before the pair got very fair into Beacon, they heard an explosion behind them. Percy and Leo flipped around, alert and ready for action, but the rest of Beacon's continued to walk as if nothing happened.

Their eyes witnessed Ruby, the girl Leo was undeniably attracted to, covered in soot and in a small crater, being subject to the wrath of a girl with white hair, a white dress, and what looked like a fencing sword mixed with a revolver at her hip.

Leo was quick to come to his new found crushes defense, "Hey! Leave her alone!"

The girl turned to face Leo with a scowl on her face, "Excuse me? Do you know who I am? I'm Weiss..."

Leo cut her off, "Sorry, but I don't care. Your name doesn't give you the right to be mean to someone. How about you leave Ruby alone?"

Weiss then huffed, "I'll have you know I was educating this dolt on the dangers of dust!"

"Dust?" Percy asked, "What's that?"

Leo facepalmed. He had told Percy to try and read the pamphlet that Leo read himself on the bullhead. It was no obvious to see that Percy had not done that.

Weiss just glared at Percy. "You aren't very smart, are you?" Weiss said with rude tone.

She then held up one of the vial's that was in her hand, " _This_ is dust - mined and purified from the Schnee Quarry."

"Uhh, that doesn't really explain what it is?" Percy pointed out.

Weiss just rolled her eyes, "You're hopeless."

"So I've been told," Percy replied as he shrugged his shoulders.

"Anyways," Weiss continued, obviously annoyed, "Dust! Fire, water, lightning, energy! We use this to help us fight the Grimm!"

Leo and Percy shared a look when Weiss mentioned the Grimm. The two had become aware of the Grimm when they watched a news report when they had stayed overnight at the bullhead station. They saw footage as Grimm ripped through a small settlement beyond Vale's walls until the camera eventually cut out with it being deemed too violent to be showed on public airways.

After that video, Leo knew that the demon bear he saw in his dream was one of the Grimm. It matched up with the violent creatures habits as well as the weird glowing red lines it had on it's skullish armor. Leo had learned that there were multiple species of Grimm, and that they were prone to senseless violence. They were unlike animals in the sense they were only focused on survival, the Grimm could sense fear, anger, sorrow, and sadness, and were even attracted to it.

The two demigods had had a serious conversation about the Grimm. The pair had come up with the idea that there was a chance the Grimm had a master and weren't just packs of ravenous animals stemmed from some form of evolution. The Grimm were unnatural, and like the monsters back home that were ultimately swayed by Gaea, Tartarus, or Kronos, there was a chance the Grimm had been left off the leash, but were supremely controlled by a single entity.

However, it was just a theory. The Grimm had been around for thousands of years and had been a plague to Human and Faunus kind ever since. It could be perfectly logical that the Grimm were just mindless animals similar to Greek monsters.

Leo extended a hand out to Ruby and helped her up off the ground.

"You okay?" he asked, with concern in his voice.

"Yeah I'm okay," she replied.

Ruby then turned towards Weiss, "I'm really sorry I sneezed on your Dust! I didn't mean to blow up!"

Weiss gave her a cold stare, "You are complete dolt! What are you even doing here? Aren't you a little young to be attending Beacon?"

Leo tried to come to Ruby's defense but Weiss cut her off before Leo could even start, "This isn't your ordinary combat school. It's not just sparring and practice, you know! We're here to fight monsters so watch where you're going!"

"Who are you princess?" Percy asked from the side, his annoyance beginning to become apparent.

Before Weiss could answer, a girl with black hair and amber eyes approached them. She was dressed black stockings covered by a pair of white shorts. Her white shirt was covered by a black buttoned vest which had coat tails hanging down the back. And to tie the outfit all together, the girl had a little black bow resting a top of her head. In her hand was a tiny vile, probably one of Weiss' that had been blown away.

"It's heiress actually" the oreo themed girl replied, "Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company."

"Finally!" Weiss said smugly, "Some recognition!"

The girl spoke again, "The same company infamous for its controversial labor forces and business partners."

"Wha- How dare you! The nerve! Ugh-" Weiss said as she was caught off guard.

Weiss yanked the vial from the girl's hand and stormed off, muttering insults and slurs under her breath the whole way.

Leo then yelled out, "Yeah! You just got burned!"

"I'm sorry!" Ruby called out next to him, "I'll try to make it up to you!"

However, the icy girl was out of range and Ruby's apology feel on deaf ears.

"Ugh," Ruby said, "Thanks for the save though! What's your-"

Percy then cut in, "Uhh Ruby, she left."

Ruby then looked around and and saw the girl with the black bow was nowhere near them, and on her way toward Beacon's center.

After seeing the girl walk off, Ruby sagged her shoulders and looked up to the sky.

"Welcome to Beacon," she said sadly, the disappointment in her ability to make friends clearly evident.

Before Percy or Leo could comfort her a blonde boy dressed in jeans, a hoodie, covered by a well worn cuirass and shoulder pads approached.

"Hi I'm Janue," The boy said nervously "I saw you blow up and I wanted to say I thought it was kinda neat."

Ruby beamed at the blonde boy before her and Leo and Percy got a good look at him as well. Something was off about Jaune. Unlike the the other students who carried themselves with a large amounts of swagger, confidence, and smidge of arrogance, Jaune seemed incredibly reserved and timid. Leo was no master at reading people like Piper, Annabeth, or Reyna, but he had been able to pick up on things that didn't belong.

"Gee… well thanks!" Ruby said cheerfully

She then motioned a hand to herself and then to the two demigods next to her "I'm Ruby, and these are my friends, Leo and Percy!"

Leo flashed his signature grin while saying, 'what's up', and Percy took Jaune's hand in handshake.

"Owh dude! You got a really strong grip," Jaune said as he massaged his right land with his left after the two separated.

"My bad," Percy said as he rubbed the back of his head and gave an awkward smile, "Years of sword fighting and training gives a guy a strong grip."

"I'm sure dads' are just absolutely thrilled when they meet you" Jaune whispered under his breath, but none of them heard.

The group then began walking towards Beacon in a comfortable silence. Eventually, Jaune broke the silence as he began talking about his motion sickness problem. It was truly nasty stuff, and Leo by no means wanted to hear about the trash cans Jaune filled with vomit.

"All I'm saying is motion sickness is a more common problem than people let on!" Jaune said to the group as he attempted to defend his plight.

"Don't worry Jaune, I'm with you," Percy said as he agreed with the blonde "I _hate_ flying… but at least I didn't throw up."

Ruby then started to giggle, "Look I'm sorry! Vomit boy is the first thing that came to mind when we saw you earlier."

"Oh yeah? What if I called you crater face?" Jaune fired back, unwilling to be put down by the teasing of a 15 year old.

"Hey! That explosion was an accident and I didn't mean too! I accidentally sneezed and it just went ka-boom!" Ruby said while waving her arms.

The group began to laugh at Ruby. Her wacky, waving arms reminded him of the inflatable blow up men that were positioned outside of car dealerships.

After the laughter died down, Jaune spoke, "Anyways, the name's Jaune Arc! Short, sweet, and rolls off the tongue - ladies love it!"

Ah yes the swave approach. Leo knew this tactic quite well.

"Do they really?" he asked skeptically.

"They will!" Jaune replied in protest, "Well I...I hope they will! My dad always says that..."

"Don't worry Jaune," Percy said as he clapped a hand onto his shoulder, "I'm sure you'll find a nice girl during our time here. Or maybe a nice guy, I'm not one to judge."

Jaune's face blushed and Leo and Ruby chuckled at the blonde boy's embarrassment. The four continued to walk before Ruby stopped and grabbed something off her back.

"So I got this thing…"

The black and red haired girl pressed a button on a small box, and it slowly transformed into a giant scythe. The group of boys eyes widened at the initial sight of it, and Jaune let out a little yelp when Ruby brought the tip of the blade into the ground.

"This is my baby, Crescent Rose," she said proudly, "I made her myself."

"Whoa," Jaune said as he stared at it, "that's really impressive."

Leo moved closer to the scythe, and his eyes examined the blade. The weapon was certainly impressive for a 15 year old girl to make, that was for sure. A project like this would have to be taken up by at least two or three of his siblings

"Can I hold it? I promise I'll be careful with her" Leo asked as he looked to Ruby.

"Uhh...sure. But if you hurt her I will end you!" Ruby said deathly serious.

Leo held the scythe in his hand as he scanned over it with his eyes.

"This a real piece of work Ruby," Leo said as he studied it, "Military grade titanium with a custom paint job? Very nice."

Leo then ran his hands across Crescent Rose, the giant blade threatening to tip over if he shifted his weight at an odd angle. However, he paused when he felt the loading boat of a rifle.

"Oh and a bolt action rifle loader, by the feel of it it's takes…" Leo paused as he thought about it, ".50 caliber rounds?"

Percy and Jaune had confused looks on their faces and Ruby as he and Leo engaged in shop talk, "She's also a customizable high-impact sniper rifle!"

Percy and Jaune still looked lost.

Ruby noticing older boys confused looks dumbed it down for them, "It's also a gun."

"Ohhhh," Percy and Jaune said simultaneously, finally understanding.

Ruby turned toward Leo and had a look of curiosity on her face, "How did you know that? Just by touching Crescent Rose?"

Leo glanced at Percy, and Percy shook his head side to side,

"I, uhh, just have a thing for building stuff," Leo said. "I like to make things. When I was little me and my mom would take things about and put them back together. One thing I took apart was a gun because she wanted me to be safe and know how to handle them" Leo improvised.

"That's awesome!" Ruby said "My uncle taught me everything there was to know about scythes. Normally I don't let people touch Crescent Rose, but you seem to know a lot about weapons. Would you mind maybe… helping me do some maintenance on her sometime?"

On the outside, Leo was playing it cool. But on the inside he was whooping with excitement. The girl who Leo thought was attractive wanted to hang out with him and work on weapons together. Maybe coming to Beacon wouldn't be too bad after all.

"I'd love to" Leo agreed with a toothy grin "My friends don't call me Repair Boy for nothing."

Leo handed the scythe back to Ruby and she collapsed it back into it's small carry box and she hooked it to her belt behind her.

"What about you guys?" Ruby asked "I'm a huge weapons nerd, so can I please see your weapons?"

"Oh...uh,"Jaune said as he pulled his sword out from it's sheath, "I got this sword!"

"Ohhhh," Ruby said as she studied the weapon.

"Nice," Percy said.

Jaune continued, "Yeah! And I've got this shield too."

Jaune raised his sheath and it expanded into his shield.

"Double nice," Percy said, clearly a fan of the classics.

Ruby lightly touched his shield, "So...what do they do?"

Jaune fumbled with his shield as it sprang off his arm, it expanding and retracting multiple times until he grabbed its retracted form and reattached it to his belt.

"Well the shield gets smaller, so when I get tired of it, I can just put it away…"

"But wouldn't it still weigh the same though?" Leo asked.

"Yeah it does" Jaune said dejectedly. "But it's a hand-me-down, my great-great grandfather used it when he fought in the war."

"It sounds more like a family heirloom to me," Percy said as he spoke up "Trust me, sometimes ancient weapons are the most reliable ones."

Ruby then turned to Percy, "It sounds like you have a love for the classics Percy. What do you jump into the fray with?"

As she finished her sentence, Ruby did a karate pose, pretending to punch imaginary enemies. Percy chuckled at the small girl. He put his hand in his pocket, pulling out a plain ball point pen.

"Uhh Percy?" Ruby said with worry in her voice, "That's a...pen."

Percy gave a small laugh, "Trust me, it's more than that."

He uncapped the pen and tapped his watch, and the steel blade and newly forged shield, sprung to life. His sword gleamed in the sunlight. Meanwhile Percy's design on the front of his shield captured Jaune's attention, the blonde boy in awe of the beautiful piece of work on the front of weapon made for battle.

Ruby squealed in excitement. Leo could only guess that Ruby had never seen a magical weapon before, especially one that could go from a pen into a deadly killing machine. The black and red hair girl attempted to grab the sword and shield from Percy to examine it, but the son of Poseidon raised the blade and shield into the air and and above his head, taking it out of Ruby's range.

Ruby groaned in annoyance as she tried to jump and reach them, "Please let me see it!"

Percy shook his head and kept his arm raised, "Nuh-uh. This sword are my newborns, and unlike Crescent Rose, I don't go passing them around to who ever wants to touch them."

Ruby 'hmpfed' in annoyance and crossed her arms, "I will get that sword and shield Percy Jackson. You mark my words."

Percy rolled his eyes and tapped the very top of shield, the weapon shrinking back onto his wrist in the form of a silver watch, and he touched the cap on to the tip of his sword, the weapon shrinking back into its standard pen form.

"I don't mean to cut this short" Jaune said "But what time is it?"

Ruby and Leo shrugged their shoulders, the youngest of the four without a care in the world. Percy then checked his watch.

"It's 1:50. Why do you ask?"

Jaune's eyes widened, "Because Orientation starts at 2! We can't be late on the first day!"

"Oh schist…" Percy said as he became slightly frantic "Well then let's go!"

The four took off running and at 1:59, they slide into the main hall before the assembly began.

The three huntsmen and one huntress in training looked at the massive hall filled to the brink with new students. Leo tried his best to look for an empty seat, but his modest height of 5'6" made it difficult to see between students. Finding four seats would be hard, but nothing was impossible.

However, Leo's attention was pulled away as someone called out to their female friend.

"Ruby!" A blonde girl yelled across the hall, "Over here, I saved you a spot!"

Ruby turned to her new friends, "I … I gotta go. See you after the ceremony?" she asked.

The group stammered out their yes' and Percy even teased her not to explode again. Ruby rolled her eyes but still let out of laugh before she left to go sit with the blonde girl who had called her.

The light's began to dim, signaling that orientation was about to start.

"Come on guys, over here" Percy said, "I think I see some open seats."

The group of three boys headed toward the seats, but little did they know though that a certain spartan with red hair and emerald eyes began to follow them, as there was a fourth seat open where the three boys were.

The boys sat down, Percy sat on the end next to a stranger, Jaune next to him, and Leo on the end near the open seat. The son of Hephaestus was making himself comfortable on the wooden bench when he felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned around and Leo's jaw almost dropped.

In front of him stood what Leo could only guess was the reborn and female version of Achilles or maybe even Reyna's long lost cousin. The girl had red hair, emerald green eyes, and red clothes and bronze armor that seemed to blend together perfectly. Leo could tell she was a fighter, she carried herself like some of the more modest campers in Cabin 5.

"I'm sorry, but is it okay if I sit here? Everywhere else seems to be full" the warrior asked.

"Yeah sure" Leo said as he attempted to scooch over with what little room he had.

The girl sat down on the bench and Leo stuck out his hand for a handshake, "My name is Leo. What's yours?"

Instead of telling him her name, the girl asked Leo a question of her own, leaving Leo hanging in the process, "Wait you don't recognize me?"

Leo then felt himself put a weird look on his face, "Should I?"

He then turned to Percy and Jaune, "Hey guys do you know who this is?"

Percy and Jaune glanced over. The blonde shook his head now and the black haired boy shrugged his shoulders. Leo turned back to the redhead, who was clearly surprised they didn't know who she was.

"So can I get your name then?" Leo asked trying to make sure it didn't get awkward.

"Oh - of course!" the girl said as she shook herself out of whatever strange emotion was running through her head, "My name is Pyrrha, Pyrrha Nikos."

"It's nice to meet you Pyrrha" Leo said as he shook her hand, "I'm Leo Valdez, and if we go down the line, that's Jaune Arc and Percy Jackson."

The other boys said their hellos and Pyrrha waved with a friendly smile. However, before anything else could be said, the Headmaster of Beacon graced the stage.

"I'll... keep this brief." The Headmaster began "You have traveled here in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills, and when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people."

Ozpin looked out at the crowd, considering what to say next.

"But I look amongst you and all I see is wasted energy in need of purpose... direction."

"Wow," Leo whispered to the makeshift group "What a rousing speech. I sure wanna give my life for the people now!"

Percy snorted.

"You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step."

With that Ozpin finished his speech and Professor Goodwitch stepped up to center stage.

"You will gather in the ballroom tonight; tomorrow your initiation begins. Be ready. You are dismissed," Goodwitch said.

* * *

 _ **-Percy Jackson-**_

After that, the students started to disperse and Percy, Leo, Jaune, and their new friend Pyrrha made their way outside into the courtyard.

"Hey me and Perce are gonna look around the school. Do you wanna come with us?" Leo asked the pair .

"Nah I think I'm gonna head to the ballroom and try and find a good spot," the knight replied.

"Me as well" Pyrrha added "Would you like us to save you some space next to us?"

"Yeah that would be awesome," Percy said cheerfully "Thanks guys! We'll see you tonight then."

Percy and Leo waved goodbye to Jaune and Pyrrha and set off, touring Beacon for the first time.

As they were roaming the winding halls of Beacon, Percy turned to Leo and asked him a question, "What are the odds you could make us something more protective than jeans and a t-shirt?"

"Hmm I don't know," Leo paused. "But come to think of it, having some armor wouldn't hurt. After looking at all the other kids here it might be a good idea to have some since we don't have any nectar, ambrosia, or aura's to protect us."

"Alright then I think we have an answer," Percy said as he clapped his hands together. "Do you think you could start tonight so that way we'd have them for whatever Ozpin has planned for us tomorrow?"

Leo raised an eyebrow, "What makes you think I have to do it?" He questioned. "You have two hands."

"Well, uhh, I just assumed cause ya know, you're a child of Hephaestus an-", Percy muttered.

The Latino boy just started cracking up, "Dude, you should've seen your face."

Leo finished his laugh, "Of course I'll make em Perce. Anything you want specifically?"

"Use your imagination Leo, make sets of armor for the ages," Percy said with a smile.

A big smile was on his face, "Don't worry Percy! I won't let you down!"

Leo then took off the hall with a determined look on his face and he shouted, "Watch out world, the Supreme Commander of the Argo II is coming through!"

"Uhh Leo," Percy called and he pointed his thumb over his shoulder, "The forge would be that way."

Leo then turned around "Watch out world! The Supreme Commander of the Argo II is coming through part two!"

Percy just laughed and shook his head, "Never change Repair Boy."

He turned around, quietly musing to himself about where he should go. However, instead of seeing an empty hallway, he came nose to nose with the expressionless face of Glynda Goodwitch.

"Holy Hades!" Percy said as he moved back a bit, the professor way too close for comfort, "Someone should put a bell on you."

The blonde professor remained unfazed by Percy's comment, "The Headmaster would like to see you in his office. Please follow me."

Percy wearily followed the professor through Beacon's empty hallways until they had arrived at the elevator. She pressed a button calling for the elevator and the two waited a few seconds in silence. Eventually, the elevator dinged and the doors slide open. Percy and Professor Goodwitch filed in, and she pressed the top button on the panel.

The elevator began it's long ascent up toward move up, and Percy heard the familiar sound of music coming from a speaker in the elevator. He was absolutely confused. How did a different planet, reality, or universe have _Stayin Alive_ by the Bee Gees?

"Huh," Percy mumbled, "You guys have terrible elevator music here too."

"What was that?" Goodwitch asked.

"Nothing!" Percy said quickly.

The elevator door dinged, signaling they had arrived and Percy was quick to step out to avoid anymore follow up questions. Once exiting the elevator and stepping out, Percy was met with the view of maybe the most futuristic office he'd ever seen. The ceiling and floor were covered by a thin glass layer and behind it were the inner gears of Beacon's clock tower.

As Percy began to walk forward, he took note of Ozpin's desk. It seemed to match the interior of the room, having dark legs as well as a glass surface. On his desk was a myriad of papers, more than likely paperwork for the now bustling academy. The headmaster sat in an equally as impressive chair, watching as him and Glynda entered the room.

The finally arrived in front of Ozpin's desk. Percy stood in front of the headmaster, while Glynda Goodwitch moved to stand slightly behind her employer.

Percy spoke up first, "Uhh sir, did I do something wrong?"

Ozpin raised an eyebrow, "Why do you think that Percy?"

"Well usually whenever I got called in to the headmaster's office, it usually resulted in me getting expelled," Percy admitted.

"No, no" Ozpin said with the wave of his hand "I simply wanted to ask you how you and Leo have been adjusting to Remnant."

"Well, I don't want to speak for Leo, but so far it's been pretty good. We haven't been attacked by a monster in the two days we've been here so that's always a plus," Percy said.

"Good. I'm glad you feel this way," Ozpin said.

The silver haired Headmaster spoke again, "However there is something I would like to discuss with you."

"Are you sure you're not expelling me?" Percy asked from his seat "Because that's usually along the first lines of me getting expelled."

"No child you are not getting suspended," Ozpin said with slight irritation in his voice.

"I have a simple request for you," he said as he continued, "Do not tell anyone your's or Mr. Valdez's heritage."

Percy raised an eyebrow, and Ozpin saw it as a sign to continue

"We have many enemies in this world" Ozpin stated "If they caught wind of a rumor that two half-gods were attending Beacon, it could prove to be _very_ dangerous for this school and its students."

Percy nodded his head as he understood what the Headmaster was getting at, "I understand Professor."

"Good," Ozpin replied "It has also come to my attention that last night I was rather rude when I left you and Mister Valdez to your own devices."

Ozpin then opened one of the drawers on his side desk, and removed three objects. He placed them on the table. Two of the objects were the same, but they were two different colors. One was colored red and the other was a deep shade of blue, and they were give or take about the size of Annabeth's iPhone 8 back on Earth.

Ozpin then grabbed blue looking phone and held it up, "This is called a Scroll. We use them to communicate with one another as well as monitor our aura levels during battle. You may call and text message with these to your heart's desire. One is for Mr. Valdez and the other for yourself. Please see that he gets it."

Ozpin slid the two scrolls and Percy gladly accepted. Percy put the red one in his back pocket for Leo and the blue one in his front left.

The third object on Ozpin's desk looked like it was a credit card, but there were a lot of them.

Ozpin held the cards in his hand, "This is Lien. It is our world wide currency. I realized that you and Mister Valdez have very little to call your own, so I will gladly give you some so you may buy some spare clothes as well as school supplies.

Percy took the lien from Ozpin and put it in his front right pocket.

"Are you sure about this Professor? I feel bad taking your money."

"Do not worry about it," Ozpin said as he waved off Percy's concern, "I have plenty to go around. Just return before sundown tonight with your new belongings. We wouldn't want you to be late for your first night here now would we?"

Percy then rose from his chair and thanked the Professor, before turning back toward the elevator. He pressed the button and the elevator door dinged immediately and he stepped inside. The demigod pressed the button for the ground floor and the doors closed.

As he descended downward, Percy heard another familiar song. The Girl From Ipanema, to be precise.

"Gods I hate elevator music" Percy groaned as the elevator moved downward at a snail's pace.

* * *

 _ **-Leonidas Valdez-**_

Leo wiped the sweat from his brow as he took a break from working on Percy's armor. The project proved to be a challenge as Leo pushed himself to his creative limits. He had originally thought about creating an armor similar to the ones he had made back at Camp Half Blood. Leo knew Percy would like the reminder of home, but that reminder could be a double edged sword.

Percy had done well at hiding it, but Leo could see that he missed home. Percy was a just a little bit quieter, a little less rowdy, and a bit more introverted. I mean what could Leo expect though. Percy had left the potential love of his life, family, and friends behind when he die. He never made it out of Tartarus and he even had a scar in the middle of his chest to prove it.

Leo shuddered when he thought about that vertical scar that ran along Percy's chest. It was almost as if Leo's nightmare had come to life. The image of a lifeless Jason and Percy side by side and the later with a glass sword running through his chest was just… hellish. It was almost as if the Fates had decided to scar Percy and use it to torture Leo at the same time.

The worst thing about Percy's scar though was that it was a constant reminder that things had changed. Percy was... different. He was quieter and didn't joke as much as he used to. He seemed almost like he was a bit less.

However, the son of Hephaestus had faith he might be able to bounce back. He and Percy been giving the Fates the middle finger ever since they had manifested their control over the elements. But that nightmare, the cause of Leo's anxiety, was his way to save his friends and maybe get. Leo would be damned if he had that nightmare plague him every night and didn't do something to try and counter it.

That counter came in the form of Leo creating a newer, much more modern armor. Unlike the armor Leo made for Jason that was made out of leather and celestial bronze, this new suit of protective armor was a brand new design. A mix of Kevlar and Carbon Fiber for defense, with a splash of Polymer for comfort and flare. The suit was mostly black, Leo deciding to go for sleaker look, but in the middle of the sternum and across the pecs was where Leo had added his own signature design.

The mechanic had opted to add to the armor the same logo he had added to Percy's new shield. On the sternum resided a silver trident and a laurel wreath. The trident stood horizontally, piercing through the opening. Beginning on the edge of the laurel wreath were three silver lines. They weren't thin, more of a solid block in design. They resided one on top of the other, and they stretched out across the pectorals and onto the shoulder blades.

He took a step back as he admired his work. The armor was truly a work of art and wouldn't have been possible without Beacon's vast surplus of ready materials. Leo would have to thank Ozpin for that later.

He made his way back to his work bench and began to examine the last part that would be attached to Percy's new armor. Resting on the bench in front of him was a leather harness that tucked under the arms at the arm-pits. However, the most important feature of the harness was the powerful magnet on the back that only attracted one type of metal: Olympian Steel.

While Percy's shield came in watch form, it proved that it could be a bother at times. The watch, having to be pressed to be activated, could place Percy in a bind. He could be locked in a situation where he wouldn't be able to tap the small shield button on the watch, placing him at a disadvantage. Afterall, the watch was meant to conceal the shield from the mortal world, but in a place such as Remnant, where the open carry of weapons was seen as normal, no one would bat an eye if Percy had a shield on his back.

The device was ready. It had been tested by the last remaining piece of Olympian Steel that Leo kept on his person. It wasn't much, the small chunk weighing slightly less than a pound, but it was enough to be tested with. Satisfied with the harness, Leo turned and grabbed his Archimedes Sphere from the table and tossed it into the air. The small rotors inside of it turned on, the sphere fumbling a bit before it stabilized itself in the air.

"Alright A.S." Leo said to the sphere "Display the designs for my personal armor. I believe it's File 6794."

Leo waited a moment, the sphere taking a second to process his command, and then a blue screen filled with data, charts, and and the design for his armor finally appeared. He began to study it, refreshing his mind as it had been a week or two since he had even examined this particular schematic. However, while Leo was preoccupied, he didn't see a girl in a red cloak sneak up behind him with a mischievous look in her eyes.

"Hey Leo!" Ruby shrieked as she got right next to Leo's right ear.

"Ahhh!" Leo screamed.

Leo took a step backwards, fumbling slightly. However, he quickly recovered in a karate pose, ready to chop away at whatever threat was near him. Once his eyes landed on Ruby though, the paranoia disappeared and was replaced with a relieved, yet slightly annoyed look.

"I should have known it was you" Leo said with a laugh as he shook his head side to side.

The red reaper was holding her sides from laughing so much.

"You should've… you should've seen your face! You were like 'AHHHH.' That was great." Ruby said wiping a tear from her eye.

Leo just grinned, "Yeah yeah whatever…You did get me pretty good though. But you better stay on your toes! I'm gonna prank you back now!"

"Bring it on Repair Boy!" Ruby challenged and the two laughed.

Leo then turned back to the to the display that was in front of him. He reached his hand out and scrolled downward, reading more of his notes and double checking his research. Ruby, her interested peaked by the sphere in the air and the hologram in front of her, walked over next to Leo and tried to see what he was reading.

"Sooo what are you working on?" the reaper asked.

"Well I just finished forging a new set of armor for Percy" Leo said he motioned to the combat suit that rested on a mannequin, "And now I'm refreshing myself on the designs I had for my own little arsenal."

Ruby nodded and began studying the blueprints. Leo could only guess she was slightly lost. After all, his notes were messy and complicated, and most importantly, she started reading in the middle of his work. Thus it made Leo even more surprised when Ruby asked a question.

"You're planning on making a metal glove? Like a gauntlet?"

Leo turned to Ruby, slightly surprised the girl had picked up on his notes so quick.

"Not exactly" he replied "This is going to be a metal wristband, similar to a FitBit, if you've ever heard of that."

The girl shook her head no, but Leo continued anyways.

"Basically it's made of something I've been working on called Nanotech" Leo then began to scroll through his notes, sliding down until he found what he was looking for.

"Ah here it is" Leo said as he came to a stop.

Before them was a theoretical replica of what Leo wanted to do. Before them, the diagram played out. A hand placed five fingers onto the wristbands small screen. The hand then dragged forward, forming a gloved hand made of metal. The diagram of the glove then flipped, where the palm would be was a small metal circle, made of some type of glass. Ruby glanced at the list on the side that listed the abilities the glove allowed.

"It shoots a laser?!" Ruby asked enthusiastically.

Leo laughed a little, "No it's not a laser. It's a blast of energy generated from extreme heat. And besides that it can do a multitude of other things besides shoot lasers."

Ruby turned back and continued reading, her silver eyes widening as she continued to go down the list.

"So you're telling me this little tiny glove made of nanotech" Ruby said as she used her fingers to place air quotes on nanotech "Can shoot a sonic wave, emit extreme brightness similar to a flash bang, and even help you fly?"

"Well not really fly" Leo said as he grabbed the last piece of Olympian Steel from his work bench along with a hammer, chisel, and small crafting tools "More like a controlled fall at its best."

"And you're sure it'll work?"

Leo shrugged his shoulders " I hope so. Nanotech is a thing I've kind of invented on my own, so it's all theoretical. If this works, then I'll have created my own… thing?"

Ruby giggled at that, "Well I wish you luck, even though I don't think you'll need it. But I have to go back to the Great Hall and find Yang. If I'm not careful she's going to run off with her friends again."

With that, Ruby zipped out of the room, leaving behind a flurry of rose petals in her wake. Leo smiled and shook his head. Ruby was certainly an odd one, but that was okay. People always said opposites attracted, but Leo really hoped that wasn't the true with Ruby. She had said she loved to make weapons and creating was one of his favorite things to do.

* * *

 ** _-Ruby Rose-_**

Inside the Great Hall of Beacon Academy, Ruby laid on her sleeping bag. She was dressed in her favorite pajamas: a black tank top, white sweats with roses decorating them, and a sleeping mask resting on the top of head. She was on her stomach with a pen in hand, writing in her journal.

Then a blonde girl, who was dressed in an orange tank top with flaming heart on the front and black athletic shorts flopped down on the sleeping bag next to Ruby. The girl was Ruby's half sister, Yang Xiao Long.

"It's like a big slumber party!" Yang said with enthusiasm in her voice.

Ruby just continued to stare at her journal, but replied to her sister "I don't think Dad would approve of all the boys though."

"I know I do!" Yang said with a purr in her voice as she looked at several guys, sporting their nightwear.

However one boy caught Yang's eye.

"Who's that with the black hair? Yang asked.

Ruby glanced up, her eyes peering over her journal and saw Yang was staring at Percy on the other side of the hall. The boy was in a pair of black running shorts and he was looking for his shirt.

Ruby knew her sister well enough to tell she was checking her new friend out. Ruby wasn't overly smitten with boys like her sister. She thought they were slightly icky and better as friends, but she could see why Yang was intrigued.

Percy's windswept black hair and extremely toned body made Ruby a little bit red in the cheeks. He wasn't overly muscular, unlike some of the meaty boys at orientation. A six pack graced Percy's stomach and Ruby could see Yang almost droll at the sight. However, what caught Ruby's attention the most with the long vertical scar in the middle of Percy's chest and other minor scars that covered his body.

Normally, Ruby wouldn't be one to pry when it came to scars. She had learned that the stories behind them could be embarrassing or emotionally stressful, but Ruby was still curious as to what caused them. After all, Aura usually cured scars with enough time. It must've been a real tough hit if Percy had received a scar that didn't heal all the way.

"Oh that's Percy" Ruby said as she finally answered her sister's question, "I met him and his friend Leo today."

"Wait ! You met a handsome hunk like him and you didn't introduce me?" Yang then covered her heart with one hand and raised her other hand to her forehead and pretended like she was going to pass out, "You wound me Ruby!"

"Well it's not my fault you ran off with your friends and left me by myself!" Ruby shouted as she grabbed a pillow and it at her sister, hitting her in the face.

Yang recovered quickly, "Ruby you have to learn how to make friends! It's important to know how to get along with others."

"Shut up! I didn't get to take my friends with me to school! It's weird not knowing anyone here!" Ruby pouted.

"Well ...uh - what about the blonde guy you met earlier... Jaune? He's nice! And you met Percy and Leo! They seem like two cool dudes." Yang argued.

Yang started up again, "See! You're doing fine. That's a hundred percent increase right there!"

Ruby then flopped onto her back, "Pretty sure Weiss counts as a negative friend though…"

"There's no such thing as a negative friend," Yang said as she tried to reassure her sister "You just made three friends and one enemy! Look it's only been one day. Trust me, you've got friends all around you, you just haven't met them yet."

Yang then jumped up and grabbed Ruby by the hand.

"Wait Yang! What are you doing?!" Ruby shrieked.

"You're gonna introduce me to your friends," she said bluntly.

Yang then dragged Ruby across the ballroom floor until they stopped in front of Percy, Leo, Jaune, and Pyrrha.

Leo then turned and looked at Ruby and Yang, "Uh... hi Ruby. Who's this aggressive person dragging you across the floor?"

"This is my sister, Yang Xiao Long. She wanted to meet you guys." Ruby said, clearly embarrassed.

"Hiya guys!" Yang said cheerfully "Like Ruby said, I'm Yang."

Pyrrha went first, "Hello! My name is Pyrrha. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Jaune went next, "The name's Jaune Arc. Short, sweet, rolls off the tongue, and the ladies love it." He said in a flirtatious manner.

"Do they though?' Yang asked, clearly unimpressed.

Leo and Percy laughed, the two finding it funny that blonde boxer in front of them said the same thing Leo said earlier.

"Why does everyone say that?" Jaune mumbled under his breath.

The five around Jaune laughed, clearly thinking the boys embarrassment was truly funny.

Leo decided to take the heat off Jaune and introduce himself, "I'm Leo Valdez, A.K.A. the Supersized Mcshizzle."

Yang just raised an eyebrow and laughed, "You look more like the Under-sized Mcshizzle if you ask me."

"Insulting my height huh? That's low blondie, you're gonna get pranked now. You and Ruby both!"

Yang then looked at Ruby, and the red reaper shrugged her shoulders.

Percy went next, "I'm Percy Jackson. It's nice to meet you."

When Percy introduced himself to her sister, Ruby saw Percy give Yang a strange look. It wasn't strange in the sense that Yang was weird looking, but almost as if Percy recognized her from somewhere. However, that face only lasted for a few seconds before it disappeared, replaced with a friendly smile.

Yang, trying to continue the conversation with the boy she was intrigued by looked down at Percy's arm and noticed the permanent ink on his arm.

"So what's the meaning behind your tattoo?" she asked.

"Oh I forgot about that," Percy said as he turned his right wrist up and looked at the tattoo "It means _Senatus Populusque Romanus,_ or in english, The Senate and People of Rome."

Percy then pointed to the one line on his arm under the trident, "This line represents my first year of service to the legion. Technically I'm supposed to have ten lines, but I got out of it."

"Oh that's cool. Well I like it! I think it looks good on you," Yang said as she smiled and winked at Percy.

Percy smiled a bit at her sister's shameless flirting, "Thanks. I'm not sure if I'd ever get another one, but if I ever thought about it, I'll be sure to get your opinion."

She then turned and said bye to each them, "Sleep tight P-Money! See ya Vomit Boy! Bye Undersized Mcshizzle!"

Then she got to Percy and had a genuine tone in her voice and a the slightest shade of red graced her pale cheeks, "Goodnight Percy."

She then turned and dragged Ruby away, even as her younger sister tried to pry herself free from Yang's grip.

"Bye guys! Yang let me go!" Ruby said as Yang dragged her towards the corner of the ballroom, where a certain black haired girl with a bow on her head was quietly reading a book.

* * *

- ** _Perseus Jackson-_**

The new students of Beacon Academy had been up for a few hours. The majority had showered and prepared for the day knowing that today was unlike any other. Today would become their first step in becoming full fledged huntsmen and huntresses, protectors of Remnant from the ravenous Grimm. The students had begun to prepare in Beacon's co-ed locker room, some sharpening their weapons and others mentally preparing themselves for the initiation ahead of them. In the corner of the locker room, two demigods had begun to prepare themselves.

Leo stood in front of Percy's locker, a hand on the latch that opened the storage unit.

"So Percy you ready to see your new armor?" Leo asked, clearly eager to show off his newest invention.

The older demigod nodded his head, "I'm ready McShizzle. Let's see what you got."

A bright smile covered Leo's face and the demigod yanked the door open, revealing a black modern combat suit. Percy was in awe. He took a step forward and placed his hand on the suit that hung inside his locker. He took it off the hanger it rested on, and the demigod began to change.

The suit felt good on Percy's body. Unlike the bulky Celestial Bronze armor he wore at camp, this armor felt like dry-fit clothing. It hung closely to his body and gave him wider range of flexibility than any Greek armor ever could. He began to move around, throwing a few punches to see if the suit stayed as comfortable when exerting some energy. He was pleased to find that it held up. Percy then turned back towards his locker and pulled out a brown leather strap with two holes and a small square on the back.

"What's this?" he asked as he pulled it out of the locker and held it in front of Leo.

"That my friend is another creation of mine which I call a shield harness. Slip your arms through and then activate your shield and I'll show you how it works."

Percy his right arm in first and then his second. The harness didn't hang at all, instead hugging closely to his back. He grabbed his watch that was resting inside his locker. He pressed the button and it expanded into his shield. Percy slid his arms out from the leather straps and handed it to Leo.

The son of Hephaestus grabbed the shield with both hands and told Percy to turn around. He did as instructed and he heard Leo move closer to him. Percy then heard a soft hum from his back and felt the shield connect to his back. He peered backwards, surprised to see the shield now connected to his back.

"How is it doing this?" Percy asked as he turned back to face Leo.

"It's basically just a really strong magnet that locks onto the metal that your shield is made of" Leo said as he grabbed his own gear from his locker "It's actually really not too complicated."

Percy nodded his head and turned back toward his locker. The son of Poseidon gazed at his reflection in the mirror in the back of his locker. The tight fighting combat suit clung to Percy's body, very clearly highlighting his muscles and toned form. If anything, Leo had given Percy a few style points.

Percy closed his locker and turned to Leo who had just finished getting ready. The boy was dressed in his familiar fireproof clothes, a white long sleeve shirt with the first button undone and sleeves rolled up, blacks pants, and brown shoes. A metal glove was on Leo's right hand and he had his magical tool belt around his waist. Lastly, he had a metal pauldron on his left shoulder along with a pair of metal knee pads.

At first Percy was surprised by Leo's decision to add armor. Leo had always been one to run or gun with his fire powers or wit, choosing to use them to get himself out of whatever situation he found himself in. But Leo had proven himself to be much more of a fighter since Percy had last seen him. His display with combat screwdrivers was truly impressive. Leo's decision to add armor must've been a result of his new found seriousness for dangerous situations.

"Alright I'm all set" Leo said as he turned to face Percy, "You ready to go?"

"Born ready" Percy said with a nod of his head.

The group of students attending Beacon's initiation had lined up along the cliffs. Leo was standing on a metal tile to the right of Ruby, and Percy stood to the right of Leo. Professor Ozpin spoke to them and Glynda Goodwitch stood behind him, tablet in hand.

"For years you have trained to become warriors, and today, your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest" Ozpin said to the students in front of him.

Goodwitch then spoke from behind him, "Now, I'm sure many of you have heard the rumors about the assignment of teams. Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates... today."

Percy heard a faint cry of protest further down the line.

Ozpin started up again, "These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon. So it is in your best interest to be paired with someone whom you can work well with."

Percy could hear Ruby groan.

"That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years," Ozpin said, dropping the bombshell on his new students.

"What!" Ruby shrieked.

Percy ignored Ruby and continued to listen to Ozpin, "After you've partnered up, make your way toward the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path… or you will die."

"Jeez now he's just a ray of shine," Percy heard Leo mumble under his breath.

"You will be monitored and graded through the duration of your initiation, but our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path containing several relics. Each pair must choose one and return to the top of the cliff. You will guard that item as well as your standing, and we will grade you appropriately. Any questions?" Ozpin asked.

Jaune raised his hand, "Uhh sir?"

Ozpin ignored Jaune, "Good! Now take your positions."

The students stepped onto the tile in front of them and got into ready postion. The tiles then began to launch the students into the air, starting on the left and working their way to the right where Percy was.

"Uhh sir," Jaune said as he tried to get the Headmaster's attention, "How exactly will we be landing? Cause I didn't get a parachute."

"There will be no parachutes, Ozpin said, deathly serious, "You will be falling."

Before Jaune could ask another question, Jaune was launched from the pad, screaming the whole way.

"I'll see you on the other side Perce," Leo said as he launched into the air.

The son of Poseidon braced himself _._

"Well" Percy mumbled to himself "Once more unto the breach _._ "

He was then launched from the tile, and the son of the Sea sailed through the air.

* * *

 **This is son44 signing off. Until next time folks, and happy reading.**


	3. We Get Introduced To New Uglies

**Chapter Three of the Heroes of Remnant. Re-Write Published as of 6/6/19**

 **Song of the Chapter: The Avengers: Composed by Alan Silvestri**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own anything you recognize.**

* * *

 ** _-Perseus Jackson-_**

Free falling through the air was never really one of Percy's favorite things. He had done it twice before. The first time was when he was twelve years old and jumped out of the Gateway Arch - six hundred and thirty feet into the Mississippi River. The second time was when he had fallen into Tartarus with Annabeth, a nine day fall and the only reason they had survived was because he had used his powers to control the River Cocytus. This time though, there was no water to catch Percy, and he began to panic a little bit. Without even thinking he let out a whistle, an old habit of having a trusty pegasus.

After a few seconds and no flying horse, Percy knew Blackjack wasn't going to magically show up. Percy could feel himself come to the apex of his launch and he began to descend. His body and brain went into overdrive. He looked around to see if the other students were having the same dilemma he was.

He saw Yang blasting through the air with her gauntlet like weapons and Leo controlling his descent with his metal glove that he had forged from himself. Even Weiss, the cranky white haired girl, had found a way down as she created glyph like platforms and casually jumped from one to the other.

Percy cursed to himself. It was almost as if has bad luck had followed him from one world to the next. Instead of feeling sorry for himself, he began to formulate a plan in his head. Percy pulled his newly named sword, Onyx, from his pocket and uncapped it. He might be able to angle his descent so that he could stick Onyx in a tree and slide down. It was a desperate plan, and since there was no water he could see, it was his only plan. He got lower and lower to the ground and Percy prepared himself for his crash down. However, right before he hit the tree line, a black blur zoomed under him. Percy's eyes lit up and a huge smile crossed his face as realized he was sitting on the back of an all black pegasus.

"Blackjack! You have no idea how good it is to see."

Blackjack let out a winnie, " _It's good to see you too Boss. Got any sugar cubes?"_

Percy let out a laugh. Some things never changed.

"I don't have any on me right now bud, but I swear I'll bring you some later. Right now let's catch up to Leo."

Blackjack let out a puff of air and nodded his head. With a quick flap of his wings, the pegasus sped up and began to descend to where they had saw Leo land in the forest.

They quickly caught up to younger demigod. As they touched down, Percy could see that Leo was surprised by the sight of something from back home. Blackjack cantered a bit as he hit the ground and he began to traut over to where Leo was.

"No way" Leo said as Blackjack got closer "Is that really your pegasus?"

Percy swung his right leg over and hoped off his steed, landing next to Leo.

"It is. I'm not really sure how he even got here. I was falling through the air and I whistled because back home, Blackjack would show up whenever I did that. And somehow he _actually_ showed up here."

Percy and Leo then turned to face the Pegasus, both extremely confused.

"Blackjack how exactly did you get here?" Percy asked.

 _"Honestly Boss, I don't know. One minute I was in the stable, minding my own business, and the next thing I know, I'm turning to embers. First my wings began to disappear and then my legs. I was going nuts, thinking I was gonna die."_

"He said he was in his stable and then he began to turn to embers" Percy relayed to Leo "But that doesn't make any sense? How could he…"

Percy then drifted off as he looked at Leo. The son of Hephaestus looked like he had seen a ghost. Gone was the confident and witty Leo, and in his place was a shocked one. It was almost as if what Blackjack said resonated with the demigod?

"Embers?" Percy said again, hoping that it would snap his partner out of it.

That seemed to snap Leo out of it as he snapped toward Percy. The boy grabbed onto Percy's shoulders and shook them slightly.

"Percy that sounds exactly like how I got here! Maybe how Blackjack got here is connected to how I got here!"

"You need to slow down" Percy said as he removed Leo's hands. "It might be connected, but even if it is, it doesn't seem like the process could be reversed."

A day ago, back when they were waiting at Beacon's Bullhead station, the two had had a conversation about if they could return home, would they take it? The two certainly weren't opposed to it. They had friends and family back home who they desperately wanted to see. But Percy wasn't sure if he would even be able to. He knew for a fact that he had died in Tartarus and therefore Earth, so if he went back, he might die immediately. Going back was a chance that Percy was unwilling to take as of now.

"We can talk about it later" Percy said to Leo "Right now we need to focus on our assignment."

"Yeah… yeah you're right" Leo said as he finally began to shake himself out of it "Ozpin said something about a temple, right? Which way do you think it is?"

Percy just shrugged his shoulders, "I don't know. What if we used the position of the -"

It was then that the older of the two was cut off when a loud noise filled the air, specifically a gunshot.

Percy was quickly at the ready, grabbing his shield from his back and holding Onyx at the ready.

"Ugh we're gonna run towards it aren't we?" Leo asked as he tossed his Archimedes Sphere into the air, and he grabbed a screwdriver from his tool-belt.

"Yeup," Percy said as he took off in a run, leaving Leo to catch up.

"Man why can't we ever just purposely avoid the bad things! I like being alive!" Leo yelled as he chased after Percy.

The two quickly charged in the direction of the gunshot. Percy and Leo soon came face to back with shadow like monsters that Percy recognized as the Grimm, specifically Beowolves. The pack had not noticed them yet, and they menacingly marched forward toward the person who fired the shot, Yang Xiao Long.

Percy recognized right away that Yang could use some help. The sheer number of them was a lot for one person to handle, so Percy decided to do what he did best, cause mayhem.

"Leo go!" Percy called out, and the two demigods rushed into battle.

Percy moved to attack the right side of the pack and Leo moved to hit the left. After that Percy lost track of Leo as he threw himself into combat. Percy swung with Onyx, slashing through the Grimm's back. The beast let out a wimper of pain, and dropped to the ground dead. On the other side, another Beowolf let out a cry of pain as Percy guessed Leo had finally made contact.

Percy readied his shield and gripped his sword tighter in his hand as a few of the Grimm swapped their attention from Yang and moved it to Percy. A Beowolf charged at Percy from the right. The beast went to bite Percy's head off, but the son of Poseidon side stepped at the last second. He quickly brought his blade up, and brought it down just as quickly, effectively lopping off the creatures head. The creature's head plopped onto the ground and the rest of its body was carried forward by momentum before collapsing to the ground.

The second Grimm took a different approach. It charged at Percy and before it got to him it stood up on its hind legs and swung its clawed, meaty hook at him. He instinctively raised his shield to block the blow and he felt the claws rake across the shield. However instead of attacking again, the Beowolf took a few steps backwards and let out a howl of pain. With a quick glance at the beast, Percy understood why. The claws on the Beowolf had been reduced to nothing, almost like how when chalk was used too much, it disappeared.

Percy, unwilling to give the creature any breathing room, slid his shield off his wrist and slung it at the Beowolf. The shield spun rapidly through the air, a testament to Percy's strength. The metal disk collided with the wounded Beowolf's skull and stayed there. The Beowolf fell face forward into the ground.

Before Percy could reclaim his shield another Beowolf charged toward him and attempted to attack the demigod from behind. However, Percy heard the monster charging. With his back turned, he rolled to his right and sprang back up as the creature barreled past. The monster turned around and viciously roared at him and began to charge again. This time though, Percy was ready. The son of the Sea God charged at the monster and as it lunged to try and rip his throat out, Percy dropped into a baseball slide. His stuck his sword up, jabbing it into the creature's belly, and as he slid, it sliced down its stomach. The Beowolf fell forward, dead, and the black contents of its stomach spilled over the ground.

Percy picked himself up and looked to see how Leo and Yang were fairing. Yang had practically bullied the Beowolves, knocking the snot out of them with her high powered gauntlets. Meanwhile, Leo had just pulled his screwdriver from the skull of a Beowolf. The boy gave Percy a nod, signaling that he was good, and Percy nodded back.

Percy turned to look back at Yang and surprisingly, a black haired girl with a bow was standing there talking to her. He actually recognized the girl, she was the one who had told off Weiss about her company and their sketchy practices.

Percy moved toward the group and Leo met him on the way. The two fell into stride as the made their way to Yang and her new partner. Before they got there, Yang turned toward the demigods and she had a smile on her face.

"Thanks for the help guys! But I think me and Blake here could've taken them on our own."

"I'm sure you could've" Percy said with a smile

"But it never ever hurts to have backup" Leo added on.

That earned a small laugh from Yang, but Blake remained stoic beside her.

"Oh I remember you!" Leo said as he pointed at Blake.

Not many people would've noticed Blake's reaction, but Percy certainly did. The girl's breath hitched and she shifted her hand ever slightly toward weapon. In response, Percy's grip tightened around Onyx, just in case it got ugly.

"You're the girl who totally burned the Ice Queen yesterday!" Leo continued.

And with that, all the tension in Blake evaporated. Her hand moved away from her weapon and back toward her hip. Percy was never one to pry, but he could spot when someone was trying to hide something. Mischievous monsters back home had taught him how to look for something that wanted to be hidden. Not to say Blake was a monster, she certainly wasn't at first glance. But like it or not, everyone had their secrets.

Blake gave a small smile, "Thanks, I'm not really a big fan of her or her family's company."

"Well I'm not really a fan of her face." Leo said, earning a small smile from Blake.

Leo flashed a toothy grin, "This is looking like the beginning of a beautiful friendship."

"Sorry to ruin your flirting Valdez," Yang cut in, "But do you guys know which way we're supposed to go?"

"I'm fairly certain it's that way," Blake said as she pointed east.

"Alright let's blow this popsicle stand!" Leo said enthusiastically, as the group took off into the forest.

The group trudged along through the forest. Leo and Blake led the pack. The mechanic was trying his best to get the girl to talk to him, occasionally telling jokes or making comments about Weiss that were less than flattering. Occasionally she would say a word or two back, but not giving Leo a lot to work with. Meanwhile, Percy and Yang were trailing a bit behind them, making small talk as they got to know one another.

In a strange way, Yang reminded Percy a little bit of his ex-girlfriend, Annabeth. They had the same hair color, and their hairstyle was somewhat similar. However, that's where the similarities ended. Yang was pale unlike Annabeth's tan, lilac eyes versus stormy gray, sarcastic and pun loving versus serious and inquisitive.

Percy found that he and Yang actually got along quite well. She would laugh at the stories he told her about him and the Stoll brothers pranks along with some of his mis-adventures that he had altered so that he wouldn't give away his demi-god heritage.

Yang was a good audience and she was an even better storyteller. She told him stories about times her and Ruby would goof around as kids and pull pranks on her step-mom, dad, and uncle.

"Wait wait" Percy said in between laughs "Tell me that again. Ruby dared you to take a sip from your uncle's flask?"

"She did!" Yang said "I was seven and she was five and my uncle had told her it was filled with special apple juice that she shouldn't have. How was I supposed to know it was filled with alcohol?!"

Percy began to howl with laughter and Yang joined in with him. He wasn't sure why he was laughing so hard, but he was. Maybe because it was the first legitimately funny thing he had heard days, but it was certainly a good story.

He hadn't known Yang long, but Percy was beginning to tell that Yang was the life of the party. Her outgoing and bold personality was certainly a force to be reckoned with, for good and for bad. He was excited to get to know her more, and hopefully the two would get into some situations which would provide them with plenty of wacky tales to tell to their friends.

Percy was about to say something to Yang until he heard Leo call out from in front of them, "Uhh guys? I think we found it."

Percy and Yang quickly caught up to their partners and they found themselves in a clearing that revealed a circular stone temple. The group started to walk through and they noticed that the ruins were broken and decrypt, almost as if a horde of Grimm had come through and wrecked the once beautiful place.

They made their way forward and into the ruins. Their weapons were drawn and they were on guard, the group unwilling to be surprised by any foe that lurked about. The two pairs of partners made it through the ruins and found what they were looking for: numerous pedestals, each one holding smaller black and gold artifacts.

As they got closer, Blake spoke up as finally noticed what rested on the pedestals.

"Chess pieces?"

"It looks like some people have already been here," Yang said as she motioned towards a few of the empty pedestals without chess pieces.

"Slow and steady wins the race Blondie," Leo teased her and Yang stuck her tongue out at him.

"Which one do you think we should pick?" Percy asked Leo, the younger boy studying the pieces.

Yang however didn't ask her partners opinion as she approached one of the relics.

"Oh how about this cute little pony!?"

Blake just smirked at her new partner, "Sure."

"What do you think Perce? Which one do you think we should take?" Leo asked again.

Percy studied the pieces, and eventually his eyes fell onto the piece. He wasn't sure why he picked it, but it just right.

Percy pointed at the piece, "That one right there."

Leo then walked up to the pedestal and snatched up the piece, and then deposited it into one of the pouches on his tool-belt.

"That wasn't too bad," Yang admitted.

"Well it wasn't exactly difficult to find this place," Blake as the two shared a smile with one another.

Percy and Leo let out a groan and Blake turned towards them, "What's wrong with you guys?"

Leo then spoke, "Every time someone says: that wasn't too bad or wow that was easy, shit usually hits the fan right after."

Percy just nodded his head slowly, "He's not wrong.

Then the group heard something and it sounded like… a scream?

"Is that a girl screaming?" Yang asked.

Blake looked towards the sky and squinted, "Is that... Ruby?"

The four looked towards the sky and it in fact was Ruby hurtling towards the ground like a comet.

"Heads up!" Ruby shrieked in fear as she descended toward the ground.

"Ruby!" Leo yelled as he moved out to catch her, his arms waving about.

Then out of nowhere, Jaune came flying through the air like a missile and crashed into Ruby. The good news was that he had stopped Ruby's descent. The bad news: they had now crashed into a nearby tree, with Ruby laying on the ground unmoving.

Leo and Yang were the first to move. They took of in a sprint and made it to Ruby.

Leo fell to his knees and started shaking her.

"Ruby I swear to the gods if you died I'm gonna kill you myself," Leo said through gritted teeth.

Ruby then let out a groan and she slowly sat up gripping her head, "Ohhhh, what happened?"

Before she got an answer, Yang engulfed Ruby in a massive bear hug, "Thank Oum you didn't die."

The hug was cut off when they heard a moan from above them. Yang and Ruby separated and the two along with Leo looked up to see Jaune hanging upside down from a tree branch.

"Uh hey guys," Jaune said as his voice cracked, "Can I get some help down?"

After the group got Jaune down, the party of six regrouped at the base of the ruined temple. Then suddenly a crashing sound was heard at the edge of the forest, and a bear like looking Grimm know as Ursa came crashing through. However, explosions erupted behind it and it fell to the ground dead with an orange haired girl they had seen at initiation riding on its back.

"Yeeeee-haw!" she squealed in glee.

However as soon as realized she had killed the Ursa, her face broke out in a frown, "Aw it's broken."

Then another boy from initiation arrived. He had black hair and a magenta streak emerged, and he was dressed in green, black, and white clothes which seemed to have an emphasis on Chinese culture.

"Nora! Please don't ever do that again."

But in the blink of an eye, Nora had raced past the group of six and was now at the temple. She quickly grabbed one of the chess pieces, before the boy yelled for her again.

"Coming Ren!" she giggled as she started to skip back towards the group.

"Did...did that girl just ride in on an Ursa?" Blake asked.

Yang started to answer, but she was cut off as Pyrrha burst through the trees with humongous scorpion like Grimm, a Deathstalker, hot on her tail.

Yang's eye then flashed a violent shade of red and her hair burst into flames.

"I can't take this anymore! Can everyone just chill out for like two seconds before something crazy happens!" Yang yelled with anger in her voice.

Two seconds passed by, and no one moved a muscle. They were all more scared of Yang and her outburst than the Deathstalker.

Ruby then pulled on Yang's sleeve, "Uh, Yang?"

Ruby then pointed in the air, where a certain white haired heiress remained in the claws of a large bird Grimm the people of Remnant called a Nevermore.

"How could you leave me?" they heard Weiss shriek.

"I told you to jump!" Ruby called back to her.

"She's gonna fall," Blake said nonchalantly.

"She'll be fine," Ruby said nervously.

"She's falling," Ren said as he observed.

"I'll catch you Weiss!" yelled Jaune

Jaune then took off and had his arms out waiting for Weiss. However, the force from Weiss falling was too much Jaune and he landed on the ground in a face plant, with Weiss landing comfortably on his back.

"My hero," Weiss said sarcastically as Jaune groaned on the ground.

They picked themselves up and the group of ten was now standing together eyeing the Deathstalker on the ground and the Nevermore that had begun to circle them.

"Great! The gang's all here. Now we can die together!" Yang said sarcastically.

"Not if I can help it!" Ruby yelled as she took off in a burst of rose petals.

"Wait Ruby!" Leo yelled but she was long gone.

Ruby speed across the open field. As she emerged from the rose petals, she swung Crescent Rose at the Deathstalker and it swung its pincer. The force behind the pincer knocked the scythe away, causing Ruby to stumble backwards.

"T-totally fine!" Ruby yelled.

Ruby then pulled Crescent Rose back and switched it into its rifle form and fired a few rounds at the Deathstalker. The creature moved to cover its face, but it kept charging as she started to run back towards the group.

Yang then took off toward Ruby, "Ruby get out of there!"

Ruby was about half way towards Yang when the giant Nevermore above them gave out an ear shattering caw. It flapped its wings and sharp feathers flew towards them. However, only one of them found it's mark as it pinned Ruby's cape to the ground, thus locking her in one place.

"Ruby get out of there!" she called to her sister with panic in her voice.

Ruby was struggling frantically trying to get her cape free. However, her eyes got wide when the Deathstalker got behind her and raised its pincer.

Then a white blur shot past Yang and a wall of ice encased the Deathstalker and its stinger, effectively incapacitating it for the time being. Most importantly, Ruby Rose wasn't a shish-kabobed Deathstalker snack.

Weiss stood in front of Ruby and Percy was unable to hear what she said due to the distance. However, the two huntresses made their way back, and the group of ten prepared themselves for whatever layed ahead.

 _Huh maybe there is some good in her after all,_ Percy thought to himself.

Yang then took off towards Ruby and gave her a big hug.

"Ruby if you ever do that again I'm gonna beat you till you're senseless!" Yang scolded as she engulfed her in a giant hug.

"Ugh Yang, I'm fine!"

However, the Deathstalker wasn't out of it yet. It started to rip squirm and shake and the Nevermore above them gave out a ferocious shriek.

After a short five second reunion, of 'I'm glad you're not dead's and Weiss was so cool', Jaune noticed something in the air.

"Uhh guys? That thing is circling back. What should we do?" He said with a slight hint of fear.

Weiss spoke, "Look, there's no sense in dilly-dallying. Our objective is right in front of us."

The group then eyed the chess pieces inside the ruins.

"She's right," Ruby said with new found confidence in her voice, "Our mission is to grab the artifacts and make it back to the cliffs. There's no point in fighting these things."

"Run and live," Leo muttered "Now that's a plan I can get behind."

"Go and grab your artifacts then," Percy said. "We'll make sure those big ugly Grimm don't get too close."

Ruby and Jaune nodded as they took off for the ruins.

After a few minutes the the two returned, and the group took off. However, once they started running, the Deathstalker had escaped from its icy chains and began to give chase to the group.

Leo glanced back to sneak a peek at the Grimm, and he saw it was almost within striking distance.

"Ahh come on you stupid oversized bug, leave us alone!"

Leo a large amount of heat into his metal covered hand, effectively charging it the gauntlet. Once it had loaded to full capacity, the glove let out a small persistent sound and he shot the beam of energy at the beast.

The Deathstalker stopped in its tracks as the beam of energy connected with its face. The scorpion like monster let out a screech, and moved one of its pincers to protect itself. Once the beam of energy subsided, the Grimm let out a roar and continued to give chase to the teenagers.

After some more running, the group finally made it out of the forest and onto an ancient stone bridge connecting to an equally old giant stone tower. The ten of them began to sprint across but the Nevermore that had been stalking them from the air reappeared and crashed through the center of the stone bridge. Ruby, Weiss, Yang, Nora, Jaune, and Leo were on one side of the bridge, while Percy, Blake, Ren and Pyrrha were trapped on the other.

Percy, Pyrrha, Blake, and Ren pulled out their weapons and got ready to do battle with the Deathstalker.

Percy then started shouting orders, "Ren! Blake! Pin it down!"

The two nodded their heads and took off towards the Grimm, dodging and weaving through the scorpion Grimm's attack and shot at the beast. However, the more they shot it, the more annoyed it became.

"Do you see the stinger?" Percy said to Pyrrha as he eyed the Deathstalker.

"Yes. What about it?" she replied back.

"If we can cut it off there's only one place it can fall," Percy said as he pointed his sword at the stinger that was raised above the Deathstalkers head.

Pyrrha followed his eyes and understood without speaking. She was about to take off when they heard screaming. The next thing they knew Jaune and and Nora were next to them.

"How did you..." Percy started, but he stopped. Now wasn't the time.

"Go for the stinger!" he shouted as the four then charged.

Nora rushed in first, her giant hammer at the ready. She brought the hammer down and it surged with electricity. However, it barely made a scratch much to Nora's shock. The Deathstalker swung it's pincer at Nora and knocked her back, her aura flaring from the hit.

Percy, Jaune, and Pyrrha rushed the beast while Ren and Blake continued to pepper it with dust bullets. Percy moved to the right side of the monster while Pyrrha and Jaune worked together on the left. The red head moved in close and tried to stab and slash the beast's stinger while Jaune protected her side from a thrashing pincer.

The scorpion Grimm began to move backwards as it began to become overwhelmed by the five huntsmen and huntresses. Percy swung Onyx at the monster and it seemed to glare at the demigod. It then lunged it's stinger at Percy, determined to get rid of the annoyance. He sidestepped and swung Onyx down onto the Deathstalkers golden stinger, slightly loosening it. The beast shrieked and Percy rolled away, not wanting to become Grimm food.

Ren then moved in, determined to take the heat off Percy for a bit. He fired his dual wield pistols named Stormflower, and distracted the beast, while Pyrrha switched her sword into its spear form and hurled it into the beast's eye. The Deathstalker hissed in pain and knocked Ren into Blake, sending her flying off the edge of the cliff and Ren unconscious to the side.

"Blake!" Percy cried out.

Percy couldn't believe it. Literally one day into the job and a new friend had already died. Praying to the gods that she had managed to grab onto a ledge or something. He rushed to the edge and was relieved to find that she had used her weapon to hook onto the other side of the stone tower mid-fall. The hook pulled her up and she joined Ruby, Weiss, Leo, and Yang take on the Nevermore that was circling them.

Percy turned his attention back to the Deathstalker. The strategy of getting close to the Deathstalker without their heads almost getting ripped off was not working and someone would get killed if they didn't take care of it soon. They needed a way to throw the Deathstalker off its game. Percy then had an idea.

"Jaune!" he called out, "Keep distracting it! I have a plan."

"Uh... it is a good plan?" he asked as he blocked a claw strike from the Deathstalker.

"Best case scenario, it works!" Percy shouted, "Worst case scenario, we die!"

Jaune couldn't respond as he became locked in combat with the Deathstalker. Percy had to move quickly if this plan was going to work. He stabbed Onyx into the ground and he took a knee. He moved his hand in front of him and placed it on the ground, his fingers getting into the dirt before him.

Percy had rarely used this power of his. It was often unpredictable and dangerous, but right now, they needed unpredictable if they were going to beat this Deathstalker. He began to focus on where the Grimm was standing and he was careful to control it. If he allowed it to spread too far, everyone would be caught off guard and they'd be right back where they ground then began to shake violently, specifically focusing itself where the dark scorpion stood. The beast then began to stumble around, desperately trying to steady itself.

The group was confused as to why the Deathstalker was now acting like a drunken fool, but they weren't going to question it. Jaune then began to call out orders to those still in the fight.

"Pyrrha, aim for the stinger!" he shouted.

"Done!" Pyrrha said as she threw her shield and it sliced through the monster's stinger, sending the sharp appendage falling into the Grimms head.

The Grimm let out a violent roar and tried to move forward and attack its foes. However, its sudden movement made it fall to the ground as the shaking Earth made it trip over itself.

"Nora! Hit it where it hurts and make sure it doesn't get back up!" Jaune commanded.

"You got it boss!" she called back.

Nora slammed her hammer into the ground and fired a pink grenade from it, launching herself into the air. Once she hit the apex of her jump, she started hurtling towards the ground. When she got close enough to the Deathstalker, she let out a battle cry and swung her hammer with all her might. The blunt force of the weapon sent the stinger through the Grimm's head.

After Nora recovered from her finishing blow, the group began to celebrate. Percy, Jaune, Nora, Pyrrha, and a now recovered Ren took a second for a quick group hug. However, it didn't last long. Their friends on the other side were still locked in combat, fighting for their lives against the Nevermore.

"You guys ready for round two?" Percy asked as they broke off from the hug.

"Born ready!" Nora said with a salute.

The rest of the group nodded their heads and began to prep themselves for another fight. They began sprinting toward the bridge and prepared to jump across. However, Weiss Schnee had just been throw off the side of the ruins and into the chasm below.

"Weiss!" Ruby had called out from across the chasm, a look of horror on her face.

Without thinking, Percy veered off and jumped off the side of the bridge and after Weiss.

"Percy wait!" Pyrrha called to him, but he was already descending down into the chasm was gone.

"Oh yeah, he's officially lost it." Nora said as he, Pyrrha, Ren, and Jaune watched as their new friend fell downward toward Weiss.

Percy wasn't sure why he jumped after Weiss. The girl had been incredibly rude to him, Ruby, and Leo, but Percy knew that if he could stop someone from dying, he would do it. Even if it meant sacrificing himself. Luckily he had a plan. He pulled his hands close to his side, increasing his speed as a result. He got close enough to Weiss to grab her, and when he did, he could see that the heiress was unconscious. He then let out his loudest New York whistle and Percy prayed that his steed would get there in time.

Percy saw a familiar black pegasus appear out of nowhere and the next thing he knew, he was sitting on the back of Blackjack, with Weiss snuggly secured in front of him.

"Blackjack I freaking love you" Percy said as he let out the breath of air that he didn't even realize he was holding.

 _Don't worry about it Boss. You know I always got your back_ his trusty pegasus responded.

It was at that moment Weiss began to groan and she finally opened her eyes. At first, she was dazed and confused. She groaned as a hand reached up and rubbed her temple. Once she opened her eyes and locked on to Percy, she began to shuffle in his arms, clearly uncomfortable.

"What are you doing?!" she hissed, "I had everything under control!"

"Under control?" Percy questioned "You would've been a pancake if I didn't catch you!"

Weiss humphed and crossed her arms, begrudgingly looking away from her savior.

Percy rolled his eyes, _'Girls'_.

Once they reached solid ground again, Weiss angrily got off Blackjack arms and stood next to Blake.

The group that now consisted of Leo, Ruby, Yang, Weiss, Blake, Jaune, Pyrrha, Ren, and Nora were now staring at Percy and Blackjack.

"Uhh Percy? Why does your horse have wings?" Ruby asked.

Blackjack let out a snort, _I'm a pegasus! Do you not see the wings tiny flower girl?!_

Percy spoke up, "That's not important right now. How's it going with the Nevermore?"

The group turned their attention back to the Nevermore and then Yang spoke, "I don't have much ammo left. What about everyone else?"

The people with guns checked their weapons.

"I have three shots with my hunting rifle left" Pyrrha said to the group.

"One grenade for me" Nora replied as she closed her launcher.

"I have one clip left on me" Blake said.

"Blake I have a third clip. You should take it" Ren said as he tossed it to her.

The looked slightly opposed to the idea, but she nodded her head and accepted, catching it in the air.

"And I'm officially out" Ruby said the new formed group "But good news is I have an idea."

The group shared a look unsure whether or not to follow Ruby. However, Percy made the decision for them.

"We're all ears Ruby. Call it."

A big small crossed Ruby's face and the ten teenagers huddled together, listening to the orders that the youngest of them had planned out.

"Huh," Leo said "it's crazy enough to actually work. Let's do it."

The group began to move but the Nevermore let out a gigantic caw. Percy turned to see the beast begin to fly toward them, its wings outstretched and ready to take out the tholos that was covering them.

"Brace yourself!"

* * *

The monster crashed through the stone structure, showering the ten with ancient mortar. Percy raised his shield up and covered himself and Yang. Weiss conjured a glyph shield in front of Ren and Ruby, while Jaune protected Blake and Nora, and Pyrrha protected Leo. As soon as the rain of stone subsided, the group emerged from their cover, taking up a circular position inside the remains of the ruined structure.

Weiss readied Myrtenaster, the silver glyph of her family's insignia appearing under her. The Heiress preparing herself to do battle and bring honor to her family name.

Nora and Ren took up position side by side, Nora's Maghild at the ready and Ren ready to shoot the Nevermore out of the sky with his Storm Flowers. The Dynamic Duo ready to fight to the death for one another, like they had down a thousand times before.

Blake calmed herself before she transformed Gambol Shroud from its pistol version, into its familiar, yet deadly katana. The Ex-Assassin un-afraid to eliminate another enemy that stood in her way.

Pyrrha transformed her hunting rifle back into her sharp spear Miló and she raised her shield Akúnö to defend herself. The Champion ready to defeat the Grimm that dared challenge her.

Yang loaded shotgun shells and snapped them into her wrist gauntlets. The familiar click sounded off, signaling that Ember Celica was now fully loaded. The Boxer got into a fighting stance, preparing to force her next opponent into submission.

Jaune gripped his sword and shield tightly. The Knight praying to his ancestors that Crocea Mors would hold true and give him the strength he needed to slay the beast.

Leo spun his favorite screwdriver, Sting, and revved his repulsor in his hand. The Mechanic ready to forge bonds of fellowship as he worked to build a safer world.

Ruby twirled Crescent Rose and sank the tip of the blade into the ground. The Reaper prepared to take the life of the Nevermore, especially if it meant saving the lives of the innocent.

Percy swung Onyx in his hand, and pulled his newly named shield, Bastion, from his back. The Sentinel stood ready to win the day, just as he had done so many times before.

Individually, the group wasn't much. They were people who were each driven by something... a desire for greatness, peace, normalcy, escape, adventure, worth, pancakes, security, heroics, and loyalty. However they all shared the same goal: to become greater than themselves and to help the people along the way.

But Together... the group was formidable. Led by the Greatest Hero of a Generation and a Silver Eyed Warrior, they were ready to do battle. United against a common enemy, the Heroes of Remnant stood ready.

* * *

The Nevermore let out a screech and began to speed toward the demigods.

"Go!" Percy shouted.

The Huntsmen and Huntresses in training scrambled to get into position.

Percy and Yang ran towards Blackjack, the pair quickly mounting the pegasus and taking off into the sky.

"Uh - is this safe?" Yang asked as she wrapped her arms around his waist.

"As long as you don't fall off it is" Percy yelled in reply, the wind making it difficult to hear.

The Nevermore let out a caw and flew toward the fast moving target that had now gone airborne.

The Nevermore, now focused on the new target in the air, gave chase. However, the Grimm had made a terrible mistake. It had assumed that the other humans nearby would not attack and leave their comrades for dead. It couldn't have been more wrong.

Jaune and Pyrrha quickly took up positions on the edge of the ruined platform. Their offensive weapons long forgot. Instead, the partners were now facing Ren and Nora, holding their shields at the ready. The lifelong best friends ran forward and jumped, Nora pushing off Pyrrha's shield and Ren off of Jaune's, and the two leaped into the air.

The dynamic duo peppered the Grimm with gunfire as they continued upward toward the apex of their jump. Ren emptied the last of the ammo inside Storm Flower and Nora pulled the trigger on the grenade launcher form of Maghild, sending her last explosive projectile into the bird like Grimm.

Initially, Ren's gunfire slowed the Nevermore. The beast merely shrugged it off, but the blast from Nora's grenade brought it to a grinding halt. The Nevermore had to flap its wings and correct itself in the air as it hadn't been expecting to feel such a blast.

However, the Nevermore had no time to rest. As the two huntsmen and huntress entered a controlled fall due to Pyrrha's semblance, the dazed Nevermore was hit from above. Yang had dropped from Blackjack and began launching punch after punch into the Grimm's skull.

The beast couldn't get the blonde brawler off. Each punch pushed it farther and farther down, the Nevermore trying it's best to flap its wings and steady itself in the air. After a few seconds of rapid punching, Yang jumped off and free fell until she landed on the back of Blackjack, with Percy expertly maneuvering the pegasus to catch her.

The Nevermore, now with a raging headache, was flapping its wings and was about ten feet from the edge of platform that suspended the ancient ruins. When it came to its sense, the Nevermore was greeted by Leo. The latino boy had his metal right hand outstretched and a cocky smile on his face.

"Say cheese!"

With that, a blinding light exploded from the repulsor of the metal hand and the bird like Grimm recoiled in pain. It's vision now gone, the Nevermore tried to move backwards and away from the huntsmen who had temporary blinded it.

While the Nevermore was without its most important sense, Weiss, Blake, and Ruby moved into action. The beast had lined itself up between the last two remaining pillars. Blake wrapped the katana part of her blade and pulled on the cable that connected to it. She quickly moved to the other side and did the same the last pillar. Once it was secured, she signaled for Weiss and Ruby to move.

Ruby then jumped onto the cable and got into a ready position with Crescent Rose securely in hand. Behind her was Weiss, who had summoned a black glyph. The glyph pulled the cable and Ruby backward, thus building up power to launch the girl.

"Of course you'd come up with this idea" Weiss scoffed as she kept her focus concentrated on maintaining her semblance.

"Think you can make the shot?" Ruby asked as she eyed the blinded Nevermore.

"Hmph! Can I!" Weiss said confidently.

"... can you?" Ruby asked skeptically as she looked back to her new partner.

"Of course I can!" Weiss snapped back.

Weiss then released the glyph and Ruby launched forward at an inhuman speed with rose petals swirling behind her. Midway through the air, Ruby hooked Crescent Rose around the blind and disoriented Nevermore's neck. The force from the launch propelled her and the hooked Grimm toward the canyon wall.

Weiss then raised Myrtenaster and began to focus. White glyphs appeared on the canyon wall and Ruby took advantage of them. The young Rose began to run up the steep wall, the glyphs allowing her to defy gravity and drag the Nevermore the behind her.

Percy and Yang landed Blackjack next to a now watching Jaune, Pyrrha, Leo, Blake, Ren, Nora, and Weiss. They watched the youngest of them reach the top of canyon, and with one quick pull of the trigger on Crescent Rose, rip the Nevermore's head from its body.

Ruby struck a pose with Crescent Rose in hand and her cape fluttering in the wind. The Nevermore's headless body fell from the top of cliff, and down into the cloudy chasm below them.

Back on the ground, the nine of them stared at Ruby with smiles on their faces. Ruby's plan had worked after all.

"Wow" Leo said as he gave out a whistle, "Now that was freaking awesome."

Everyone just nodded their heads in agreement.

"We did it" Percy said catching the group's attention "Now let's get the hell out of here."

* * *

 _Back at Beacon..._

* * *

After the battle with the Death Stalker and Nevermore, the ten students made their way back to Beacon. There they met inside the main hall where they would undergo the ceremony of passing initiation and receive their teams.

"Russel Thrush. Cardin Winchester. Dove Bronzewing. Sky Lark." Ozpin said as he called the students forward onto the stage.

"The four of you retrieved the black bishop pieces. From this day forward, you will be known as Team CRDL. Led by… Cardin Winchester!" Professor Ozpin announced.

A chorus of claps filled the hall and many cheers were heard as the newly formed team waved to the crowd.

As soon as the noise died down Ozpin spoke again, calling another new team to the front.

"Jaune Arc. Lie Ren. Pyrrha Nikos. Nora Valkyrie" he said aloud.

Percy flashed a smile at his new friends and patted Jaune on the shoulder. The four made their way up to the stage and stood in front of the esteemed headmaster.

"The four of you retrieved the white rook pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team JNPR! Led by… Jaune Arc!"

Leo and Percy started to cheer louder than everyone else.

"Oh yeah! That's our boy! Way to represent Jaune!" Leo whooped.

"Atta boy Jaune!" Percy called out.

Jaune flashed them a weak smile before the newly formed Team JNPR walked off the stage.

Ozpin spoke again, "Blake Belladona. Ruby Rose. Weiss Schnee. Yang Xiao Long."

The four girls moved towards the stage with excitement. Each grinning ear to ear, with the exception of Blake who gave a small smirk.

"The four of you retrieved the white knight pieces. From this day forward, you will be known as Team RWBY. Led by… Ruby Rose!"

"Yeah Ruby!" Leo cheered the loudest "That's what I'm talking about! Oh yeah!"

Ruby had a stunned look on her face, but when she heard Leo she blushed a little and waved at him.

Students began to cheer, and Percy clapped for his friends before the hall fell silent again.

"Perseus Jackson. Leonidas Valdez." Ozpin called out.

The demigods marched up onto the stage and stood before the Headmaster.

"The two of you retrieved the white king piece. However, due to the uneven amount of students that passed initiation, you will temporarily become a two man team until a time comes when we may fill your ranks. It is only a matter of time until that occurs."

Percy and Leo nodded their hands in understanding and dismissed the pair and they left the stage.

Professor Goodwitch then moved forward and took the microphone from her superior.

"Students, your team leaders will be sent messages as to which dorm rooms you have been assigned to. With that I leave you. You have one hour until curfew so please move your belongings swiftly. Students found to be out after curfew on a school night will be disciplined accordingly."

With Goodwitch's instructions concluded, the students filed out of the main hall. The newly formed Team RWBY and JNPR meet in the courtyard to celebrate along with Percy and Leo.

"Congrats guys!" Leo said "You guys are gonna kick some major butt this year."

"Thanks Leo," Yang said as she pulled Ruby in her for a hug, "But we'll only go as far as our fearless leader will take us."

"Ugh Yang stop!" Ruby said as she struggled to get out of Yang's vice grip, "You're embarrassing me!"

The group laughed at the two sisters antics.

As soon as the laughing died down, Nora spoke, "So a two man team huh?"

"Yeah I guess so" Percy said as he shrugged his shoulders "But it's only temporary. We'll be getting a third and fourth teammate soon enough."

He then felt a buzzing in his back pocket and Percy reached for his scroll. He pulled it out and saw that he had a message from the headmaster.

"Huh... It's Ozpin," Percy said.

"What does it say?" Ren asked.

Percy squinted his eyes, "It says he wants to meet with me and Leo in his office as soon as possible. Maybe it's to explain more about our potential teammates?"

The group nodded their head, agreeing with that conclusion. However, Nora spoke up.

"He better give you guys some crazy teammates. There's no way he wouldn't after seeing you guys kick butt during initiation."

The group laughed at the fiery redhead's opinion, but they new it contained a part of the truth. Percy and Leo had fought valiantly, their demigod training proving to make them more than capable warriors .

Percy slid his scroll into his back pocket, "We should head out Leo. Don't want to keep him waiting."

With that Percy and Leo waved to Team RWBY and JNPR, the sister teams waving goodbye to their friends and wishing them luck with the headmaster.

A brisk walk and an elevator ride later, Percy and Leo had arrived at Ozpin's office.

"Professor Ozpin" Percy said in greeting "You wanted to see us?"

"Ah yes, gentlemen. Please come in. What did you think of orientation today?"

"Well it was definitely crazy," Leo said as he answered his question "I didn't particularly enjoy the part where we got launched off a cliff though."

Ozpin chuckled before taking a sip of his coffee, "Well Mr. Valdez, that is an age old tradition. One I went through when I attended Beacon."

He then put his mug down, "However... you gentlemen probably want to know why I have summoned you here."

Percy shifted his weight from one foot to the other, "We thought it had something to do with future teammates. But I'm guessing now that that's not the case?"

Ozpin simply shook his head, "Partially correct. You two will be receiving new teammates in the future, but they will be carefully vetted by myself and Professor Goodwitch. After all, we do not just let anyone into Beacon Academy."

"Makes sense" Leo said as he nodded his head.

Ozpin gave a small chuckle at Leo's candor, "Don't worry. I will not deprive you of one of Beacon's most important features. Teammates selected in your first year often become life long friends."

Percy and Leo smiled at the headmaster. At first they had been hesitant about trusting the man, but he had proven to had their best interest in mind. He had given them a place to stay and even offered them guidance. Normally, Percy wasn't one to trust easily, but Ozpin had slowly began to break down Percy's walls.

However, it was almost as if the Fates had read Percy's mind and decided to mess with him. The friendly look that was on Ozpin's face quickly disappeared and was replaced by one of deathly clearly had something important he wanted to share, but what that was… Percy simply didn't know.

"Mister Jackson. Mister Valdez. I have not been entirely truthful about the purpose of Beacon Academy."

The two demigod's shuffled slightly, uncomfortable with the direction this conversation was going. Had they been tricked into coming to some place that was… evil?

Fortunately, Ozpin could sense the demigods change of pace and was quick to quell their nerves.

"Let me put your fears to rest" Ozpin said to them "Beacon is a place where we train the next generation to become Huntsmen and Huntresses, that is not a lie. However, Beacon Academy serves a much more... important purpose."

Ozpin then stood from his chair and began to move toward the elevator. Percy and Leo watched him warily, unsure of what was going to happen. The elevator doors binged and slide open, and Ozpin looked over his shoulder back to the teenagers

"It would be best if you'd follow me. I'd like to explain this purpose to you in the best way I know how."

The two shared a look. Percy knew that if this was a trap, they would have to fight their way out. This would be nothing new to him, but things could always go wrong. He had learned that the hard way. Percy was about to refuse the offer but Leo cut in front of him.

"Okay" Leo said simply.

The son of Hephaestus walked forward and into the elevator, joining Ozpin.

Percy stared at Ozpin. His whole demeanor had changed. It had swiftly gone from relaxed to deathly serious. He had seen that look before back at Camp Half-Blood. When Chiron had the same expression when he finally told him it was time to read the Great Prophecy.

Percy walked forward warily and stepped into the elevator and stood behind Ozpin. He wasn't nervous, but he certainly didn't trust the headmaster right now. The ride down was deathly quiet, with no awful elevator music to be heard.

"Many people think we are living in a time of peace in Remnant" Ozpin said breaking the silence "While this is true, I know there is something larger at play."

"An incoming threat…" Leo said under his breath, but the occupants of the elevator heard him.

"Precisely Mister Valdez. The threat has been lingering for some time now and has spread like a cancer" Ozpin stated, "A chess game that is starting to close in on the finishing move."

Before either of them could speak again, the elevator came to a stop. The machine dinged and the doors opened, revealing a long, barely lit hallway. However at the end of it, they could see a dim light but they were unable to determine what was emitting the glow.

"Follow me" Ozpin said as he stepped out of the elevator.

He began to walk down the hallway and Leo followed closely behind. Percy threw his hands up and he rolled his eyes, before following after the two. His demigod danger radar was going off in his head, but Leo's fast feet prevented Percy from stopping him.

Percy followed after the two. His hand in his pocket, grasped around Onyx. Eventually, he made it to the end, and what he saw was actually… shocking. Ozpin was watching over Leo as he looked at a girl who seemed to be on life support. The unconscious girl was in some type of pod. The computers near her displayed medical information that Percy couldn't quite understand.

"What the hell is this?"

"This…" Ozpin said as he motioned with a hand "is the Fall Maiden."

If what the Fall Maiden was was supposed to carry some type of weight, Percy didn't know. He and Leo were still new to this world, and what little information he had came from Ozpin himself and the news cycle he had watched on repeat at the bullhead station. The news had made no mention of any type of maiden, instead preferring to report on the much more popular White Fang and efforts of prominent Huntsmen against the Grimm.

"The Fall Maiden? What exactly is a Fall Maiden? A virgin born in the Fall?" Leo said as he stopped looking at the unconscious girl and back toward Ozpin.

Ozpin shot Leo a dirty look, "Please do not take this matter lightly Mister Valdez. This girl was attacked and beaten within an inch of her life and placed into a coma. The only reason she's alive now is because of Qrow Branwen and the life support you see here."

"Oh..." Leo said as he clearly realized his disrespect "Noted."

"This girl is one of the four maidens" Ozpin said as he tried to move past Leo's insensitive comment "A maiden is exceptionally powerful, gifted with beautiful power to help the world and make it a better place."

"Like a semblance? Except exponentially more powerful?" Leo asked.

"Half correct" Ozpin replied "While a semblance is unique to the user, a Maiden's power is transferred when the previous maiden dies. But like a semblance, it takes time for a maiden to control and understand that power. Similar to your control over fire and Mister Jackson's over water."

Leo nodded his head in understanding, but Percy was puzzled by Ozpin.

"Wait - hold on" Percy said as he raised his hands in confusion "Why are you telling us this? And how do you even know there's a threat to begin with?"

Ozpin chuckled a bit, "I'm telling you this because the story you shared with me and Glynda just a few nights ago showed me that you understand and you can be trusted. You understand myth and that the world has much more hidden behind the curtain than you'd care to see."

Ozpin continued "But we all know that once the curtain is pulled back, things cannot be unseen. It's impossible to pretend that all is good in world when it is very obviously not. That's why I'm asking you two questions now. The first: Can you help me fight back against what's behind the curtain?"

Percy and Leo shared a look. The two demigods did understand what Ozpin was saying. Ever since they had learned about their godly ancestry, their lives had been the strange that lived behind the curtain. However, Ozpin's secrecy and strange attitude finally started to make sense.

"I think we can" Leo said slowly.

"But if we're going to help you, we need to know everything" Percy said picking up for the son of Hephaestus "No lies and no half truths. If we're going to help you, we need to know how far down the rabbit hole really goes."

"That can be arranged" Ozpin said "Come by my office a week from now after your classes. My associates and I will tell you everything. The _whole_ truth."

With that, Ozpin stuck out his hand. Leo was the first to shake it and Percy was next. Once the pair was done, the two demigods turned to leave and began to walk down the hall.

"Percy. Leo." Ozpin called to them.

The two demigods turned around and faced back toward the headmaster.

"Thank you for trusting me."

The pair offered a smile and nodded their heads. They turned back toward the elevator and stepped inside. Leo pressed the button for the regular ground floor entrance and they waited for the doors to close. When they finally did and began to move upward, Percy broke the silence.

"I don't trust him."

Leo raised an eyebrow as he looked at the taller boy, "And why's that?"

"Something just seems...off" Percy answered "I don't trust him and right now, the story seems far-fetched. There's too many pieces missing. Things that don't make sense."

"Well… yeah?" Leo said "He said he'd tell us the whole story in a week. It makes sense that that there are holes in our knowledge, but that's because he literally hasn't told us."

"Leo be honest with me. When we meet with him and Goodwitch, do you honestly think he'll tell us every honest-to-gods detail? If I've learned anything from interacting with people with more influence than myself, it's that they always have secrets, and those secrets always have secrets.

Leo mused over that for a few seconds and Percy could practically see the gears turning in his head. He needed Leo to be skeptical. A cautious demi-god was one that stayed alive.

"Did I ever tell you about Annabeth during the Titan War?"

Leo looked over and shook his head no.

"I didn't think I had." Percy said lightly "Well before it had all started, Luke Castellan was Annabeth's best friend. He had rescued her when she was seven years and brought her to camp, and for the next five years she worshipped the ground he walked on."

"So when he betrayed the God's and sided with Kronos and the Titans, Annabeth was hurt and for a long time, she couldn't think clearly when it came to matters involving Luke. He had been her rock for a long time and couldn't accept that he had betrayed them and tried to kill me. She kept persisting that there was a reason."

Percy snorted and rolled his eyes at the recalled memories. He and Annabeth had gotten into many fights over the years because of Luke, and it always resulted in one of the two storming off and avoiding each other for a few days.

"She may have called me Seaweed Brain, but I was no means stupid enough to just hope that Luke would wake up one day and come to his senses like she did. So in order to understand his motives, I would play a little game. I assumed the worst: What's the worst reason Luke could possibly have for saying what he said, or why he did what he did? Then I would would ask myself: how well does that reason explain what he said and what he did?"

"And what did you come up with?"

"Luke wanted to destroy the gods, and to destroy the gods meant that they had to destroy their children, regardless of who they were. It didn't matter what bond you had or what side you fought for, Kronos would have killed them all as soon as they weren't needed anymore. Luke's desire for revenge blinded him to Kronos' real motives and it was only when Luke became his host did he realize his real plan. He let Kronos whisper in his ear, and gave in instead of expecting the worst."

"If we expect the worst from Ozpin, we can only be pleasantly surprised. Who knows, maybe he's a good man with good intentions, but I refuse to be stabbed in the back again for trusting someone I shouldn't have."

The elevator door dinged and the pair stepped out and began to head to their dorm. Leo hadn't said anything to Percy, his partner clearly thinking about what he said. Percy could only hope that Leo would listen to him. Once they had made it back into their dorm, Leo broke the silence

"I doubt he'll tell us every single detail… but I think he'll be honest enough that we'll be able to do our part to protect people. Ozpin letting us into that vault was his leap of faith. He trusts us Percy, so maybe we should start trusting him."

Well. That _wasn't_ what he wanted to hear.

"I know we haven't been here long, but I really want you to think of an alternate reality where we don't trust Ozpin. If we don't buy in to what he tells us, if there is even a sliver of doubt or hesitation from us, people are gonna die. Think about Ruby, Jaune, Pyrrha, Yang, and all the other friends we've made since we got here. Are we really going to walk away from them because we know that Ozpin won't tell us the whole truth?"

He brugudinly realized that Leo made a point, but that was slipperly slope. Walking away now might get Leo and Percy out of the web of lies in whatever intricate game Ozpin had afoot. Their decision to turn him down could mean someone else, maybe even Team RWBY and JNPR, could potentially take their place. There was no guarantee Ozpin would get them involved, but there was always a chance it could happen.

However, it was when Percy made the realization. Maybe being in this inner circle of Ozpin's wasn't the worst thing. He was ninety five percent sure Ozpin wouldn't tell them the full truth, but maybe that was a weapon in itself. After all, the was wisdom in the old saying: keep your friends closer and your enemies closer.

"Fine, we'll trust him for now" Percy said begrudgingly "Just know that I don't like it, but I'll roll with it for now."

"That's fine with me" Leo replied "As long as we get to help people, I'm okay with it for now. We can always course correct if things start to go wrong or we don't like what Ozpin has planned for us."

* * *

A few hours after they had returned to their dorm and unpacked their belongings, Percy found himself getting anxious. The first day of classes was tomorrow and as a result, activities throughout Beacon were severely limited. He sat at his desk, his foot tapping rapidly on his ground and he was trying to make sense of the Grimm Studies textbook they had been required to purchase for lecture. The words and letters were swirling in his head as Grimm became grime and grass, he knew he would have a head shattering headache if he didn't call it for the night. Knowing he was done, he closed the book and put it into his satchel for tomorrow. He stood up from his desk and stretched before heading toward the door.

"Hey, I think I'm gonna go for a walk" Percy said to Leo.

"Sounds good" Leo replied absentmindedly "Just make sure Goodwitch doesn't catch you roaming around."

Percy nodded his head and stepped outside, closing the door gently behind him.

He began to walk down the hallway, a few boards creaking underneath him because of his weight. He continued down the hall and was about to turn a corner. As he was, a white haired girl in icy colored nightgown opened the door to to her dorm and narrowed her eyes when she saw windswept black hair turn the corner of the hall.

As he wandered aimlessly, Percy thought about the response Leo had given him when he had voiced his concern to him. For some odd reason or another, Leo seemed obsessed with wanting to do the right thing of late. And the most puzzling thing about it was that he had no clue why this change had occurred in the first place.

Leo was carefree and a goofball, at least from what Percy had gathered. Leo hated when he made mistakes, and he worked tirelessly to make it better when he did, but this _thing_ Ozpin had recruited them for wasn't his mistake to fix.

He wracked his brain trying to think of a solution. Maybe something had happened at camp when he was dead and he had felt responsible for it? Or maybe a prophecy had been issued that Leo hadn't told him about? It could be anything, and that gave Percy a larger headache than his Grimm Studies textbook.

Percy eventually found a staircase that led to the roof and his breath hitched at the beautiful sight. The view was perfect, the lights of the city of Vale shown in the distance and the sea of green that was the Emerald Forest made it shine like a lighthouse on a peaceful night. He turned his gaze to the side and looked for the constellation of Zoë Nightshade, only to be disappointed to see that she was in fact, not there. However, his attention on the stars was broken when the door to the roof slammed open and Weiss Schnee emerged, seething with anger.

"What exactly, do you think you're doing up? Weiss hissed angrily.

Percy's panic disappeared when he saw it was Weiss and not a scary blonde haired professor, "Just unwinding after a long day. You should try it sometime! That way you might finally get that stick out of your butt." Percy teased.

Weiss was aghast with Percy's crude comment "I do not have a …! That is not me!"

"Really?" Percy said as he chuckled "Could've fooled me."

Weiss rolled her eyes at the insufferable boy. However, the Schnee moved closer and leaned against the ledge that the demigod had sat himself on.

"Do you mind if I stand here?"

"Not at all" Percy replied "You can even sit if you want. The ledge is certainly big enough for the both of us."

Weiss positioned herself as she sat on the ledge, careful to make sure Percy didn't get a view up her nightgown. The two sat in silence, as they looked out. The beautiful skyline of Vale blending perfectly with the stars and moon above.

"I'm - I'm sorry I wasn't more polite to you when we met" Weiss said, breaking the silence.

Percy glanced over toward the girl, her icy blue eyes staring at him.

"It's okay" Percy replied, accepting the apology

"No it's really not" Weiss admitted "I'm a Schnee. It was… problematic of me to be rude to you. I should have tried to be more polite. After all, you're the one who saved me today."

Percy laughed "It's all in a day's work. I'm sure you'll make it up to me someday."

Weiss offered Percy a small smile and the pair returned to the silence that was there before. After a couple minutes of silence, he decided to speak.

"You know" Percy began "You don't have to do the whole 'heiress' thing around me. You don't have to impress me."

"I do not …" Weiss started, but she stopped just as fast "I'm sorry. Back in Atlas, life was very strict and could be...unforgiving. My father demanded that I keep proper manners and never disgrace the family."

"Huh, what do you mean by disgrace?" Percy said as he finger quoted disgraced.

She picked at her night gown, slightly uncomfortable. "Well my father dictated that we did not associate with some of the more...unsavory people of society."

Percy frowned "You mean the Faunus?"

Weiss let out a very unlady like snort, "Of course. I don't particularly trust the Faunus. The White Fang has murdered more people in the SDC than I can count. But there are... others as well."

He raised an eyebrow, "Such as?"

If Weiss had looked uncomfortable at the mention of the Faunus, she looked even more uncomfortable broaching whatever the next topic was.

"Well as with most upper class people, they tend to use their power to get what they want. Finically, politically, and... sexually."

His eyes almost bulged out of his head, "You're telling me you sexually-"

Weiss immediately cut him off with the waving of her arms, trying to dispel the notion,"No! No absolutely not! I would never, but there are others who are like that."

Percy nodded his head in understanding, and Weiss continued.

"Back home... on the Schnee Manor grounds, we had a stable. And when I was a child, there was a boy who worked in the stables. He was there as part of a PR initiative my father had started in order to regain some of the public image our company had lost. While I didn't like him at first, he slowly became my friend."

"In Atlas, children who are products of such... sexual misconduct, are referred to as bastards and given specific last names. In Atlas, it's Snow, Vacuo is Sand, Vale is Rivers, and Mistral is Storms. The boy who worked in the stable was a bastard."

"And your father didn't like that you were forming a friendship with him" Percy concluded.

"He didn't" Weiss reaffirmed "He caught us after we had gotten back from riding one day and he was _furious_. Said that I was tarnishing the family name by associating with someone as low born as a Faunus. So I tried to keep my distance from him, only seeing him when I went with my sister to ride horses."

"So then what happened?"

"It was some time until we talked in any capacity more than a simple greeting. He found me in the gardens, and apologized for something that was never his fault to begin with. My father must have found out, and that must have been the final straw. When I went to ride the next day with Winter, he was gone. Replaced by a professional stablemen, the best money could buy."

Percy mused over that. Maybe he had misjudged Weiss in some capacity. He thought she had grown up a pampered princess, and in some capacities she certainly was. But maybe she had had it as rough as some others. Loneliness was its own kind of curse.

"Do you know what happened to him?"

She shook her head, "I don't. He was no older than ten at the time. Maybe he was sent back to his orphanage or maybe he was relocated to another part of the SDC as some type of servant. God's forbid he was sent to one of the dust mines or worse, sent to the Black."

Percy's brow furrowed, "The Black? What is that?"

Weiss let out a huff of air, "You're not familiar with Atlas at all are you?"

"Not in the slightest."

She rolled her eyes, but a small grin betrayed her annoyance.

"Atlas is split into two... sections, an upper class and lower class. The divide between them is fairly substantial, and in order to keep the peace in the lower sections of Atlas, the Night's Watch patrols and acts as a pseudo police force made up of mercenaries and even some of the more corrupt huntsmen."

"So not an ideal place for a ten year old" Percy surmised.

"Exactly" Weiss answered "I just hope that he's safe. Sometimes I feel like it was my fault he was removed..."

Weiss had a far away look in her eyes and Percy moved his hand to cover hers, giving it a gentle squeeze in comfort.

"It's not your fault. If anything it was your father's. He shouldn't have blamed a ten year old for being friends with another."

Weiss looked to his hand on hers, and then back to him. Giving a gentle smile to him. He then removed his hand, afraid he had lingered it there for too long.

"If I'm allowed to ask" Weiss said, filling the silence that had engulfed them "What is your relationship like with your father?"

Percy let out a sharp breath through his nose and looked back toward the night sky.

"My father is…. complicated" Percy answered "He had to leave when I was born, not his choice. But he left my mom, and we had a tough life. We had to struggle and make sacrifices for a long time."

Weiss listened intently beside him, clearly intrigued by someone else's parental problems.

"But my dad came back into my life when I was twelve. I was skeptical of him at first. Who wouldn't be if your dad left? But over time...I learned to forgive him and understand the situation he was in. Now, I know that he loves me, and that's all I can ask for."

"I understand…" Weiss said "My siblings and I don't necessarily have the best relationship with our father, but after what you said, maybe there's chance?"

"Yeah maybe there is" Percy admitted "I learned that you should never give up on family, no matter how bad it is. But it's also important to remember that sometimes it's better to let go than to hold on to something for too long."

Weiss nodded her head, taking his advice rather well. With that, Percy checked his scroll and realized that it was starting to get late.

"We should probably head to bed" Percy said to the heiress next to him "It's getting late."

He swung his legs back over the edge, firmly setting down on the roof. He offered a hand to Weiss and the girl took it. She gracefully turned around and set down on the roof. The two then made their way back toward the door, and quietly made their way back toward their dorms.

Eventually the pair made it back to Team RWBY's dorm.

"Well I guess this is it" Percy said as he stared at the door.

"Yeah it is…" Weiss muttered.

"I'll leave you alone for the rest of the night. Goodnight Weiss." Percy said as he turned to head back towards his room.

"Wait, Percy" Weiss called to him.

Percy turned around, "What's up?"

"Thanks for talking with me tonight. It was enjoyable" she said with a smile.

"No problem Weiss. I enjoyed it too" Percy said as he returned a smile of his own, "I'll see you tomorrow."

Little did Percy know that as soon as he was gone and the heiress had returned back to her dorm, she hopped into bed with a slight blush on her cheeks and the thought of sea green eyes on her mind.


	4. Wait This Isn't Goode High?

**Chapter Four of The Heroes of Remnant. Re-Write Published as of: 6/6/19**

 **Song of the Chapter: Academic Decommitment - Composed by Michael Giacchino**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own anything you recognize.**

* * *

 _Two Weeks After the Fall of Gaea_

 _Nine Months Before the Battle of Beacon_

* * *

 _ **-Leonidas Valdez-**_

 _Leo found himself standing amongst charred earth. He looked around and shuddered as he felt an uncomfortable feeling seep into his chest. He took a second to grow accustomed to it before he began to march through the familiar burnt ruins and toward the last remaining tower in the castle._

 _He passed through the ruins, and for some odd reason they started to become a bit more familiar to Leo. A smashed statue and destroyed dining hall that he could have sworn he'd seen somewhere before. However, he continued on approaching the ruined elevator shaft that was blocked by debris._

 _Without even having a chance to inspect it, he heard a growl behind him that he had become all too familiar with. This time Leo didn't even bother turning around, he had this dream so many times that he knew when the beast would be close enough to serve its purpose._

 _At the last second, Leo used his fire powers to launch himself into the air and over the Ursa that was charging at his back. With a crash the monster barreled into the debris, moving it out of the way and allowing for Leo to rocket himself up the shaft and away from it. He made it as far up as he could before suspending his fire powers and grabbing onto the ladder rungs that lined the inside of the shaft. After taking a moment to catch his breath he began to make his way toward the top, steeling himself for the gruesome sight he knew was waiting for him._

 _Eventually he came to the last ladder rung and he pulled himself in to the room's tallest tower. However, what he had been expecting... wasn't there?_

 _Instead of the dead faces of six of the seven demigods he would call family, there were only two bodies. One was Percy's and the other was his best friend, Jason Grace. The positions they were in were no different from the previous dreams. Jason was lying face up on the ground. His stomach had a brutal slash across his stomach and the most horrifying thing was that instead of his right eye being slashed to hell like in his previous dreams, his right arm was nothing more than a stump, the appendage completely removed and burnt just barely below the shoulder._

 _Leo had to try and stop himself from throwing up at the sight and smell of Jason's new and gruesome injury. He had seen amputees at camp before, but their life changing injuries were healed and those people were smiling and moving forward with their lives. But this injury here and seeing it in person… it was horrifying._

 _Leo quickly averted his eyes from his friend and looked at the raven haired boy next to him. Unlike Jason, Percy's position remained unchanged and he had no new injuries. The fragments of a celestial bronze weapon laid around him on the ground and a sword made of glass still remained in the center of his chest. Leo took a deep breath and tried to calm himself, then he moved forward and crouched down, putting his fingers on Percy's neck, hoping to find a pulse._

 _However, he was met with the same reaction he always got. He almost jumped out of his skin when Percy's hand snapped up and grabbed on to Leo's wrist._

 _Percy looked into Leo's eyes, and his voice was ragged through the pain, "You could've… saved us."_

 _The small amount of life that was in Percy's eyes disappeared and Leo could only be described as distressed. He looked up from Percy and looked out to the view the tower offered, only to see a city being burned to the ground and a gigantic roar filling the air._

* * *

Leo snapped awake and the first thing that he noticed is that he could barely breathe. He tried to throw the covers off, but accidentally fell out of bed during his struggle. He laid flat on the ground on his back and tried to just consume oxygen, but it was just so… difficult. He had thought he had started to get a handle on the hellish nightmare, but his condition had only been worsening the past few nights.

However, while Leo was concerned about the nightmare, the thing that bothered him the most was the sudden change in his dream. Maybe it was a good thing that the four of the seven were no longer there, but the fact that Jason remained and his wound was so gruesome puzzled Leo.

He couldn't dwell on it long as a rapid beeping noise went off next to Percy's nightstand. He heard a groan next to him and when he looked over he saw his roommate reach over and almost smash the alarm clock with his hand. He sat up in bed and gave a yawn before swinging his feet over and onto the floor. Percy blinked a few times as if he wasn't sure if it was really Leo laying on the floor.

"You good?" Percy asked, the grogginess clear in his voice.

"Yeah… yeah I'm good" Leo said as he sat up, thankful that he had managed to get his breathing under control.

Leo's elder just nodded his head and stood up. He moved toward his closet and removed his attire for the day, the ugly uniforms that Beacon's students were required to wear, and headed to the bathroom. He heard the shower turn on and Leo knew he didn't have long.

Leo ran a hand through his curly black hair and picked himself up off the floor. He knew he wouldn't have long before the day began so he started to prepare his things. He loaded a few pencils and pens into his bag and double checked to make sure he had his notebooks.

Behind him, he heard the shower turn off so he moved to grab his uniform from his closet. As he pulled his necessities out, he heard the bathroom door open and the room's lone occupant emerged. Leo had to hold back a snort as he saw Percy dressed up for the first time in his life. He had grown so accustomed to seeing the teen dressed in an orange camp shirt, ripped jeans, and Reebok shoes that this new Percy seemed like a made up, fictional character.

The younger of the two got up and slipped past the demigod. He quickly turned on the water and was pleased to find that Percy hadn't used all the water up. He quickly shed his layers and hopped in. With a quick shampoo and conditioner, the rats nest that was his bed head quickly disappeared and was replaced with his signature look that he liked to call 'the Hot Stuff'.

Once he was done, he turned off the water and stepped out. He quickly wiped himself off with his towel and began to change into his assigned uniform. When he had finally finished, he stepped out only to see Percy tapping his foot by the door, patiently waiting.

"Hold your horses amigo" Leo said as he sat down on his bed to as he slipped on his dress shoes "What's got you in such a rush?"

"Nothing really" Percy said as he checked his watch "You know me. I just get bored standing around."

Leo nodded his head in understanding. He finished tying his shoes and grabbed his satchel from next to him. He slung the leather harness over his should and walked toward the door, signaling he was ready to go.

Percy held the door open for Leo and the pair walked through. As they maneuvered through Beacon's hallways, Leo started to chat with Percy.

"So what's on tab for us first today?"

Percy pulled out his scroll from is pocket and opened it. The screen revealed an image of the two's shared schedule.

"It looks we got Grimm Studies with Professor Port" Percy said as his eyes scanned the image "Basically Monster 101."

"Ohhh useful" Leo said as the pair turned the corner of a corridor "Do you think they have an index for all the types of Grimm in the world?"

Percy furrowed his brow at the question "Weird question… but I don't think so. There are probably so many types of Grimm out there, but I doubt they've actually found them all."

"Hmm I think you're wrong" Leo challenged "I think they definitely have. The brochure for Beacon literally said that Humans and the Faunus have been fighting the Grimm for thousands of years. They must've seen them all."

"Fine, friendly bet. We ask Professor Port when we show up to class. If I'm right, I get your dessert tonight, but if you win then vice versa. Deal?"

"Deal" Leo said as he shook Percy's outstretched hand.

The two then continued to walk until they entered the lecture hall. The room was lined with rows of desks stacked upon one another, which each one higher than the one in front of it. In front was a teacher's desk and a man Leo assumed to be Professor pair approached the desk and Percy was the one to get his attention.

"Excuse me, are you Professor Port?"

The portly professor looked up from the paper he was reading and toward the two teenagers now in front of him.

"I am in fact Professor Port" the man said as he eyed the two "And you two must be Perseus Jackson and Leonidas Valdez. Ozpin was quite taken with the two of you during your initiation exam in the Emerald Forest."

The pair of demigods shared a looked before turning back to the man.

"Well we had a bet that we wanted you to settle" Leo said.

"Is there an index that contains all the known species of Grimm? Your answer is of the utmost important because we have tonight's dessert riding on your answer" Percy added in.

The professor chuckled at the two demigods, "There is in fact an index of all the species of Grimm…"

"HA! I told you" Leo said as he started to do a tiny victory dance.

"However!" Port said, stopping Leo mid Cupid Shuffle "The collection of all known Grimm species is known as the Grimmdex, and it is constantly being updated by hunters and huntresses around the world. New Grimm appear all the time and it's some huntsmen's lifelong task of finding and defeating every single species."

"So then it's both?" Percy asked.

Port thought for a second, his hand rubbing the silver beard on his face.

"Yes it would be correct to state it is both. The creation of new Grimm is not uncommon, but they tend to come in droves, meaning that the Grimmdex has to be updated every two to three years."

"AHAH!" Percy said triumphantly "You're not getting my dessert any time soon Valdez."

Leo groaned as he realized he had lost his chance at double dessert "I was _this_ close to getting a double chocolate pudding pie tonight. You've ruined me Professor Port."

The Professor let out a booming laugh, "I'm sorry my boy, but I had to be honest. I'm sure you can bet with another student and win a second dessert."

The two demigods thanked the professor for his answer and retreated toward the desks where they continued to debate Port's answer. A few minutes went by and students began to trickle into the class. Team CRDL rolled in and took seats in the back of the class while a lone Faunas girl with rabbit ears took a spot in the very front row.

Time continued to trickle down until it was five minutes before the start of their 9 A.M. class. The room was mostly full, with the exception of eight seats. However, Percy and Leo knew exactly who the seats belonged to. Team RWBY and JNPR were running fashionably late, and if they weren't fast, they'd get detention on the first day of classes.

The clock continued to wind down until there only remained one more minute in which Team RWBY and JNPR could make it. However, at 8:59, the doors to Professor Port's room swung open, and Team RWBY and JNPR scrambled to get into the room, tripping over themselves during the process..

Percy and Leo chuckled at their friends' antics. Team RWBY moved toward the front row with four empty seats in front of the two while Team JNPR filled in the back row behind the demigods.

As soon as the two teams got seated the bell rang, signaling the beginning of class.

"Monsters! Deeeeemons… Prowlers of the night! Yes, the creatures of Grimm have many names, but I prefer to refer to them as prey!" Professor Port said as he gave out a hearty laugh.

However, his joke was met with silence by the rest of the class.

Percy leaned over and whispered to Leo, "His jokes are almost as bad as Apollo's haikus.

Leo tilted his head and glanced at Percy, " _Dude,_ is there any greek god you haven't met?"

Before Percy could reply Professor Port started up again, "Uhhhh, and you shall too, upon graduating from this prestigious academy! Now, as I was saying: Vale, as well as the other three kingdoms, are safe havens in an otherwise treacherous world. Our planet is absolutely teeming with creatures that would love nothing more than to tear us to pieces! And that's where we come in! Huntsmen! Huntresses! Individuals who have sworn to protect those who cannot protect themselves! From what you ask, why the very world! But first... a story! A tale of a young and handsome man… me!"

Port then proceeded to tell his story to the class. Pyrrha, Ren, Blake, and Weiss sat in their seats respectfully, trying their best to not get bored by the professor's story. However, the other six consisting of Percy, Jaune, Ruby, Yang, Nora, and Leo had stopped paying attention entirely, instead opting to doddle, sleep, or fidget with gears in their tool belt.

Throughout Port's speech, Leo split his time between focusing on his random creation in front of him and Ruby. He laughed at Ruby doing childish things, such as picking her nose, making a paper airplane, and even her briefly snoring in class. However, he also noticed Weiss growing increasingly more annoyed with her partner, and Leo knew that this wasn't going to end well.

"The moral of the story?" Port said as he began to finish his speech "A true huntsmen must be honorable! A true huntsmen must be dependable! A true huntsmen must be strategic, well educated, and wise! Now who amongst you believes themselves to be the embodiment of these traits?"

At that moment, Weiss snapped her hand toward the sky and Percy raised his hand as well, albeit much slower than Schnee heiress.

"Ahh Miss Schnee and Mister Jackson! Well then step forward!"

Port then motioned to two sets of cages behind him, each revealing a two pairs of crimson eyes that seemed to be locked on to Leo.

"Gather your equipment from your lockers and meet us back here for your tests! Miss Schnee you will go first and then Mister Jackson" Port instructed.

The two then left the classroom for their lockers and during their absence, Leo leaned forward to Ruby, Yang, and Blake who were in front of him.

"How do you think the fight is going to go?" Leo asked.

"It's gonna be awesome!" Ruby said cheerfully "Weiss is totally going to kick mystery Grimm's butt."

"Yeah she is" Yang said agreeing with her sister "Heck I bet she'll beat it up faster than Percy."

With that Leo smiled, "Wanna make a bet out of it? You get my dessert tonight if Weiss kills the Grimm faster, but if Percy kills the Grimm faster, I get yours."

"Oh yeah you got a deal shorty-stack" Yang said as she smiled evilly "Your dessert tonight will make a fine addition to the contents of my belly."

"HA! We'll see" Leo replied back.

A short while later, Weiss and Percy returned in their battle gear. Weiss in her white combat skirt and her matching white top and bolero jacket while Percy in his form fitting, black armor.

Percy stood in the aisle of the desks while Weiss took up position in the middle of the classroom, the Heiress preparing himself for the fight ahead.

Port swung the axe portion of his weapon and it shattered the lock holding the gate closed. For a few seconds nothing happened, but then a Grimm burst through.

It was definitely an ugly Grimm in Leo's opinion. The monster resembled a giant boar with the exception of its bone armor, larger than normal tusks, and a pair of fangs in front that resembled something that belonged on a saber tooth tiger.

"Goooooo Weiss!" Yang cheered as she raised a fist into the air.

"Fight well!" Blake encouraged as she waved a small flag that had RWBY printed on it.

"Yeah represent Team RWBY!" Ruby cheered.

"Ruby!" Weiss hissed back at her youngest teammate "I'm trying to focus!"

Leo narrowed his eyes at Weiss' comment toward the girl he had a crush on, but he let it go. After all, everyone did respond differently when in the middle of a fight.

The monster then charged at Weiss, but she deflected its attack with Myrtenaster and rolled to the side as she prepared herself for her next move.

"Hang in there Weiss!" Ruby called from her seat, but Weiss ignored her.

Weiss must not have been in the mood to sit around because she charged toward the Grimm sending an attack at the creature's head. When the strike reached, the tip of Myrtenaster deflected off the creatures bone armor plating and lodged itself between its tusks, leaving Weiss extremely close to the beast with her hand still on her rapier.

"Come on Weiss! Show it who's boss!" Ruby cheered from the stadium. Weiss snapped her head back to say something to her, but as she did, the Grimm started to thrash about. Sending Weiss stumbling backwards and Myrtenaster was sailing through the air, and landing behind the Grimm.

"Oh-ho!" Port observed from his desk "Now what will you do without your weapon?"

Weiss retreated back a few steps and observed the situation. The Grimm charged again and the Heiress rolled to the side, just barely dodging its razor sharp tusks. She then toward her weapon and slid into a baseball slide as she quickly retrieved her life line.

"Weiss go for the Borbatusk's belly! There's no armor-" Ruby began.

"Ruby!" Weiss hissed from the middle of the room "Stop telling me what to do!"

However, before Ruby could offer some type of response, Percy yelled at the W of Team RWBY.

"Weiss!"

Weiss glanced at him for a second and then turned back to the Grimm. However, the monster did something Leo wouldn't expect. It leaped into the air and curled into a ball. However when it hit the ground, it began to roll toward Weiss, picking up speed every second.

Weiss had a plan though. When the beast got within striking distance, she summoned a blue snowflake glyph in front of her, shielding her from the Grimm. Once the beast struck it, it flew backwards, landing onto its back.

After that Weiss jumped into the air and the blue snowflake glyph she had previously summoned moved from in front of Weiss to behind her. As soon as the tips of her high heels made contact with the glyph, it turned to black and launched her toward the pig Grimm. With Myrtenaster outstretched, the tip of the blade pierced it's belly. The Grimm let out a shrieking noise, but as soon as it began it quickly stopped, and the monster began to disintegrate into black dust.

"Bravo Miss Schnee!" Professor Port said from his desk "That was very resourceful of you to take down the Boarbatusk with such bravo! Please take your seat. I believe that it is now Mister Jackson's turn."

Weiss began to walk back toward her companions, but before she could turn down the aisle and make it to her seat, Percy grabbed her by the wrist. He leaned down and whispered something into the girl's ear, but Leo couldn't quite hear what it was from his spot in the middle of the room. However, when Percy let go and made his way down to face his Grimm opponent, Weiss returned to her seat, clearly annoyed by whatever it was that Percy said to her.

Leo eyed Weiss until she sat down and then turned his attention back towards his partner who had now taken the proverbial center stage.

Percy had already pulled his shield off his back and the straps were placed snugly around his wrist and Onyx was already in hand. He prepared himself and nodded toward the professor, signaling that he was prepared. With a head nod of acknowledgment, Professor Port swung his axe, shattering the lock. Another Boarbatusk came barreling toward him in the form of its strange rolling attack. However, as soon as the Grimm was close, Percy merely stepped out of the way, using technique similar to that of a bullfighter.

The Boarbatusk didn't have much time or brain power to realize it had missed. In its stupidity, it kept speeding forward and crashed into the wall behind Percy. The Grimm attempted to recover, but it began to stumble around, clearly disoriented after colliding with the durable surface.

Percy took advantage of the situation and sprinted toward the Boarbatusk. Once in close quarters range, he launched a shielded uppercut at the beast's head. He connected with the bottom of the Grimm's jaw, the force of the blow lifting it off it's front legs and sending it into the wall.

He covered ground quickly and once he was in range, he threw a quick left jab with his shield arm, nailing the Grimm in the throat and pinning it to the wall. He then expertly twirled Onyx in his hand and stabbed the beast in the stomach. The Boarbatusk let out a squeal like the one Weiss had killed and Percy let it drop to the floor as he removed his shield from its throat. The Grimm began to disintegrate and disappeared into black dust.

Professor Port was the first to speak, "Excellent work Mister Jackson! Now class can you tell me the differences between Miss Schnee's and Mister Jackson's approach to fighting the Boarbatusk?"

At first not a single hand was went up. But eventually, Pyrrha raised her hand from her spot in the back of the room.

"Ah yes! Miss Nikos! Can you tell me?" Port asked.

"Weiss showed how important it is to adjust in the middle of a fight when things go wrong" Pyrrha pointed out "Her quick retrieval of her weapon through the use of her semblance is testament to that."

Weiss had a smug look on her face. After all, it wasn't every day one was praised by the four time Mistral Champion. However, Leo chuckled as Weiss's facial expression morphed from prideful to horror as Pyrrha continued her examination of the fights.

"The only problem with Weiss and her fight with the Boarbatusk is that she allowed herself to become distracted. If one becomes distracted in battle, the enemy can quickly gain the upper-hand and defeat you."

"Very good!" Professor Port congratulated "And someone else for Mister Jackson. Miss Belladonna?"

Leo half expected Blake to not be paying attention, instead expecting her to be reading a interesting book of some kind. However, he was pleasantly surprised that Blake was paying attention and even gave a gave a great answer to his question.

"Percy never allowed himself to become distracted and he beat the Boarbatusk using it's own stupidity. He was relentless when given the opportunity, and he finished it with an amazing blend of power and precision." Blake answered in her normal, monotone voice.

"Yes absolutely outstanding Miss Belladonna!" Port bellowed, praising the ninja like girl "Focus is one of the key elements in battle. One must be focused on their enemy as well as be resourceful during a battle. If not, you will find yourself struggling to keep up with your opponent. And that is something we simply cannot allow."

After Port's analysis of Pyrrha and Blake's answers, a sharp ringing sound filled the air signaling the end of class. Students began to pack up their belongings and Percy made his way back to his desk to get his bag. When he got there, he was congratulated by Team JNPR, Blake, and Yang, but Leo had slipped outside, where Ruby and Weiss had escaped the droves trying to exit the classroom.

As soon as he made it out, it wasn't too hard to find the pair. Leo heard the shouting from a distance and he approached cautiously, not wanting to interrupt their spat unless absolutely necessary. He peeked his head around the corner and he saw Weiss berating Ruby.

"That's just it! You've done absolutely nothing to earn your position! Back in the forest, you acted like a child!" Weiss said as she belittled her partner.

"Weiss where is this coming from? What happened to all the 'working together' stuff you were talking about? I thought you believed in being a team…" Ruby said, clearly confused and hurt by her partners words.

"Not a team led by _you."_ Weiss sneared "I've studied and trained and quite frankly, I believe I deserve better."

Ruby tried to reach out to Weiss, but her hand fell as soon as Weiss uttered one sentence.

"Ozpin made a mistake."

And with that the Ice Queen stormed off, leaving Ruby alone in the hall and on the verge of tears. She leaned against the wall that was next to her and slumped down. When she reached the bottom, she pulled her legs in tight and Leo could hear the sound of sniffling.

Leo took a deep breath before he turned the corner. He walked over next to Ruby and when he reached her, he slide down the wall until he was sitting on the floor next to her. As soon as he got comfortable, he sat there in silence for a few seconds while Ruby tried her best to hold back her tears.

Eventually, Ruby sensed a presence next to her and she peeked her head up and looked at Leo. He could see a tear in her silver eyes, with one slowly streaming down her face.

"Go away Leo" Ruby muttered sadly as she put her head back down, "I just wanna be left alone."

"Heck no I'm not leaving" Leo said as he continued to look at Ruby "I'd be a pretty terrible friend if I left you here by yourself."

Ruby didn't say anything, as she continued to sniffle beside him.

Leo didn't know what to do. He had never really been in a situation where it was just him and a girl who was crying. Then again, he had never really been alone with a girl ever.

"You know what Weiss said about you was wrong right?"

Ruby didn't respond.

"You are a capable leader Ruby." Leo continued "You proved it when you came up with you plan to defeat that giant chicken during initiation."

The sniffles had stopped, but the young Rose's head was still between her knees.

"It's hard to be a leader. I've never really been one, but it's something I know for sure. However after watching Percy and my friend Jason, I know that it takes a strong person to be one. Ruby, you might not think so, but I think you're a strong person. I have faith that you'll use that strength to lead Team RWBY regardless what Weiss says. It's not going to be easy but that's why you have me."

With that Ruby looked up with a hopeful look on her eyes and a slight blush on her cheeks.

"… and Percy and everyone in Team JNPR" Leo muttered out quickly "But the point is, you don't have to do this alone. We're going to be here with you every step of the way, whether you like it or not!"

Ruby let out a small laugh and did something that surprised Leo. She leaned in slightly and rested her head on Leo's shoulder.

"Thanks Leo..." she said softly with a small smile on her face "I really needed that pep talk."

Leo's face then turned the same shade of red the Ares kids used when painting Cabin Five, "No problem Ruby. I'm glad I could help."

The two then sat there in silence for a few seconds until Leo made a suggestion.

"Hey why don't we go to the cafeteria and get some food? If my Scroll timer was correct, your sister owes me her dessert and I'd be more than happy to cash it in during lunch."

Ruby then picked her head off Leo's shoulder, much to Leo's disappointment.

"Only if it's cookies!" Ruby said excitedly.

Leo then picked himself up off the floor and held a hand out to Ruby, "You got yourself a deal Miss Rose."

A smile appeared on Ruby's face and she took Leo's hand as he pulled her up.

The two then set off for the cafeteria, with Leo trying his best to keep up with the rose petal girl.

* * *

 _ **-Yang Xiao Long-**_

"Dude! That was totally awesome!" Jaune said as he gave Percy a fist bump once he had reconvened with his friends after his brawl with the Boarbatusk.

"It was certainly most impressive Percy" Ren said as he gave Percy a smile.

"Thanks guys, but it was really nothing" Percy said humbly, trying to advert attention from himself.

"Nothing?" Blake asked inquisitively "You made that Boarbatusk look foolish, and it was at least twice the size of the one Weiss fought."

"Yeah Percy! Don't sell yourself short!" Yang said as she slung her arm around Percy's shoulder, "You'll have to show me some of your moves sometimes."

Percy just laughed as he had gotten used to Yang's flirtatious personality, "I doubt you'd even be able to keep up with me goldilocks."

"Oh yeah?" Yang challenged as she tilted her head to look at Percy.

"Yeah" Percy challenged as he tilted his head to look at hers.

"I love violence!" Nora yelled from in front of them "Break his legs Yang!"

Percy's chuckled a bit at Nora's comment and Yang started to giggle. Once the two's fit of laughter had died down, Yang removed her arm as she felt Percy began to move away.

"Hey I'll catch up with you guys later. There's uh… something I need to take care of real quick."

The group muttered their goodbyes as they watched Percy began to head down the hall. The teenager had some pep in his step, as if he was determined to get somewhere… or catch up with someone.

"Man I'm starving" Jaune said as his stomach began to grumble "Let's get some food."

Team JNPR muttered their agreements and as Blake was about to open her mouth to agree, Yang cut her off.

"Sure! We'll be right there. Me and Blakey have to take care of something real quick and then we'll see you in the cafeteria. Save us a seat!"

As she finished speaking, Yang grabbed Blake by the arm and began to pull her partner by the wrist in the direction that Percy had gone.

"Whoa Yang… slow down!" Blake said as she tried to pry her wrist from her arm "What has gotten into you?"

"Just come with me Blake! I wanna see where Percy is going, and as my partner, you're required to help me. It's in the syllabus for Beacon."

"Syllabus? What? Yang just slow-"

However, the raven haired girl was cut off as Yang whispered for her to shush and motioned for her to take up position on the other side of the door that lead to an empty classroom. Inside, they could hear Weiss and Percy's voices, and it seemed like they were in the middle of an argument.

Originally, Yang had wanted to go after Weiss with Blake and confront her about how she treated Ruby during class. She knew Ruby could handle her own battles, but Weiss had rubbed her the wrong way today. Ruby was young and trying her best to be a supportive team leader. However, it seemed like Percy had beaten her to the punch.

Yang and Blake began to listen intently from their side of the door. Their voices slightly muffled, but the pair could still hear the other two classmates inside the room. It seemed like the two had made it just in time for the shouting match.

"So are you like a professional asshole or what?" Percy yelled, as the argument began to heat up "Your whole team was cheering for you, but you only snapped at Ruby? "

"She doesn't deserve to be leader of Team RWBY" Weiss hissed in response "She's childish and frankly, I think we both deserve better."

Yang almost charged into the room and was ready to knock some sense into Weiss, but Blake stopped her by placing a gentle hand on the wrist. It was a simple gesture, but Yang understood the meaning: wait and see what happens.

"Well first of all, Ruby is still fifteen. She's allowed to be a kid. And what do you mean by _we_?"

"You and me are easily the most suited for being leaders. We're easily two of the best fighters at this school. I'm more mature than Ruby and you're clearly more skilled than that dunce Arc."

Percy just stared at Weiss his mouth slightly ajar and began to shake his head in disappointment.

"Weiss it's not about maturity or skill. You don't have the slightest clue what it takes to be a leader."

"Excuse me?" the heiress snapped back.

"You're painting this picture where being a leader is some... glorious thing! Let me make it clear right now. It's not. Not at all."

"And how do you know that?" Weiss scoffed "We've been at Beacon for four days. The only leading you've done was lead Leo to class."

"And who have you lead Weiss?! Huh?!" Percy fired back "It was Ruby's plan that killed the Nevermore and Jaune's leadership that helped us kill the Deathstalker! If you're this great prodigy, why didn't you come up with a plan?"

Weiss was visibly taken back. The girl having never been challenged so directly by someone who wasn't her kin. Her mouth was agape like a fish, trying to think of something she could say, but it was clear Percy had backed her into a corner.

"There is no glory in leading. If you make a bad call, people could get hurt or even worse. You have to live with that on your conscious. Everyday." Percy said as he got in Weiss's face "So don't ever think you know something about leading, because obviously you don't."

Weiss' meet his eyes in a firm glare that Percy did not yield. Stormy green challenging frozen ice. For a moment, it seemed like neither was going to yield, but Weiss broke her gaze and smoothed her combat skirt out. softened and her anger started to disappear as she realized what Percy was alluding to.

"I... suppose I have been cold to Ruby and that it may have been... excessive." Weiss said, clearly not wanting to admit her guilt.

Percy gave Weiss a look.

"Fine" Weiss said with a huff "It was excessive, and I promise I'll make it right."

Percy gave her a small smile, "Good, because I expect you to. You should probably apologize today. It would make Ruby feel a whole lot better."

Weiss gave Percy a smile and Percy gave her one in return. However, Weiss' stomach let out a loud, rumbling growl.

Percy laughed, "Jeez I didn't know you stomach sounds like a growling Ursa when you get hungry Weiss."

Weiss slapped his arm, "Be quiet! I didn't have time to eat this morning."

Percy then motioned to the door of the classroom "Come on Weiss, let's get that stomach of yours some food. To the dining hall!"

Weiss gave a small laugh at Percy's antics and the two began to move toward the door.

Yang and Blake saw it as their cue and the two quickly fled from their spots. Blake stealthy took the lead and before they knew it, they were in the cafeteria and seated next to their teammates. When Percy had arrived, he sat next to Yang and Weiss sat next to Blake. The group went about their normal lunch. However, Yang had begun to stare at Percy out of the corner of her eye.

She wouldn't tell many people, but Yang was honestly taken with Percy. He was cute, sweet, and definitely could take more than a few punches if they ever spared together. However, the thing that made Percy stand out from the other boys who had flirted with her, was his genuine care and concern for Ruby.

Her sister had told her her multiple times about the night where she had proved herself and stopped Roman Torchwick and his goons. She had described the two boys who had helped her, how they were both ferocious fighters, with one fighting with a traditional sword and shield and the other with a pair of plain old screwdrivers and a futuristic looking glove. So when they had fought in the Emerald Forest during initiation, Yang had come to to the realization that it had been Percy and Leo who had helped Ruby that night in Vale. With that, Yang owed them a big, fat I.O.U. Ruby meant the world to her, and if anything had happened to her? Well… Yang wasn't sure and she didn't really want to think about it.

After that, Yang started to like Percy a little bit more. During their battle with the Nevermore, he had entrusted Ruby, a girl he barely knew, with his life along with everyone else that was at the ruins that day. He didn't doubt and he certainly didn't put her down, and for that, Yang was grateful. Percy, Leo, and Jaune may have been Ruby's first friends at Beacon, but Percy had been the one to get Ruby to believe in herself and show everyone what she could do.

And lastly, Percy had stood up for Ruby and knocked some common sense into Weiss in a much friendlier manner than she would have herself. Sure, she didn't like anyone criticizing and picking on her sister. Afterall, Ruby was a big girl and could fight her own battles, but having a watchful friend like Percy there to keep an eye on Ruby when she wasn't around certainly helped her sleep at night.

It seemed like the good things about Percy kept pilling on, and that honestly made Yang more intrigued. However, she wasn't crazy though. She had known Percy for a week, maybe even a little bit less. She'd play it cool like she always did, and use the Xiao Long swagger to get to know him better. Yang finally stopped looking at Percy and looked toward the muscle of Team JNPR. Nora was in the middle of telling a story that seemed too good to be true and Yang didn't want to miss out on it.

"We were in the middle of the woods, surrounded by Ursai…" Nora began.

"They were Beowolves" Ren interjected .

"Dozens of them!" Nora yelled as she stood up and waved her arms for effect.

"There were only two."

"But they were no match! Ren and I took them down and made a boatload of Lien selling Ursai skin rugs!"

Nora's story got an assortment of chuckles from the group. Yang heard Ruby's squeaky giggle, Pyrrha's muffled laugh from behind her hand, and Leo's devilish cackle that she was sure had been the bane of many teachers existence.

However, her attention had drifted from the laugh's of her friends to Ruby her was staring worriedly at Jaune. The lady-killer had been awfully quiet and was pushing his food around on his plate with his fork.

"Jaune are you okay?" Pyrrha asked, drawing the tables attention to knight.

Jaune refocused and quit playing with his food, "Huh? Oh yeah, I'm fine! Why?"

"It's just that you seem a little… not okay." Ruby admitted.

"Yeah dude. You used to be funny and awkward Jaune who threw up on people, now you're just depressed Jaune. What's been bothering you?" Leo asked.

"Guys! I'm fine. Seriously! Look!" Jaune said as he held two thumbs up and gave a weak smile. However, his facade couldn't fool anyone that was sitting at the table.

Yang shifted her attention from Jaune and looked behind him to see the sight of Team CRDL, Beacon's resident first year assholes, who were picking on Velvet Scarlatina. Yang only knew Velvet because of Weiss. After initation, Weiss had dragged them all to the library, demanding that they read up more on Nevermore's and Deathstalkers, that way they would never be caught off guard again. There, the newly formed Team RWBY had been lucky enough to met Velvet who had been in the library reading. The girl was exceptionally sweet, sharing her love of her photography with them. So when Yang saw that Team CRDL were pulling her rabbit ears, her blood began to boil.

"Jaune, Cardin and his cronies has been picking on you since you first got to Beacon!" Pyrrha pointed out.

"Yeah he's a bully!" Ruby agreed.

"Who Cardin Winchester? Nah… he just likes to mess around that's all!" Jaune tried to plead in his defense, "Name one time he's bullied me!"

"Well there's the numerous times he's knocked your books out of your hands" Blake said.

"The time he expanded your shield so you got stuck in the doorway" Yang pointed out.

"And the time he locked you in a rocket locker and you got shot into the air" Ren added.

Jaune let out a forced laugh, "I didn't land that far from school!"

"Jaune" Percy said getting his attention, "Cardin is being a jerk to you. You should tell someone."

The group then heard Velvet cry out in pain, "Ow stop it! It hurts!"

"See I told you they were real!" Cardin said to his team as he pulled on her ears.

"What a freak!" Russel laughed.

Pyrrha just glared, "Atrocious. I can't stand people like that."

Blake was staring daggers at Team CRDL, "You're not the only one…"

Yang bean to stand up, but Percy put a hand on her wrist, stopping her in her tracks. He glanced at her, "Don't worry, we got this."

Percy shot a look toward Leo, and the curly haired boy met his eyes and the two nodded simultaneously. The both stood up from the table and began to walk towards Team CRDL and Velvet.

Yang wasn't sure what they had planned, but she was certainly hoping that whatever it was, it was good.

"CUT!" Leo yelled as he approached Team CRDL

The short teenager was waving his arms around and Yang had to suppress the giggle that was rapidly developing. It might have been a serious situation, but she'd be damned if she didn't laugh at Leo's acting.

"Mr. Winchester! This is not what you're supposed to be doing in this scene!" Leo said as if he was fashionista movie director "Ruby! Pyrrha! Oh where are those dang assistants!"

The two girls shared a look, but they quickly got up from their lunch bench and moved to stand next to Leo. Both curious to see what he had planned.

"Will you two please escort this young lady to our table. She needs to get familiar with her lines for her next scene!"

The two girls then walked Velvet back to their table, with Blake sliding over a bit so she had a pace to sit. Ruby on her other side of her new Faunus friend and Pyrrha stood behind her protectively with crossed arms.

Cardin stood up from his spot at the table, clearly unhappy that his toy had been taken away. The bully rose to his full height and he easily stood a foot taller than Leo and was maybe three or four inches taller than Percy.

"Losers standing up for animal freaks now huh? Never thought I'd see the day that'd happen" He said with snicker.

Leo just rolled his eyes, "No, no, Mister Winchester. Me and Percy are just here to remind you of your lines." Leo then gestured his partner beside him "Percy if you would?"

Percy nodded and moved toward Cardin.

'Whoa what do you think you're -" Cardin began but he was stopped mid sentence as Percy launched a devastating uppercut that sent the bully into the air and crashing down onto the table his team had been sitting at. The whole dining hall became quiet at the sight and only hushed whispers could be heard.

'Whoa did you see that?" a second year student whispered.

"Yes you moron everyone in the cafeteria saw it"

"Well jeez, no need to be rude about it."

The rest of Team CRDL rushed to their leader and tried to help him off of the table, but Cardin shook them off as he got up.

"You're gonna regret that you piece of shit" Cardin said angrily. With Cardin charged toward Percy and Leo, with the Russel, Dove, and Sky not to far behind.

Without anyone seeing, Percy willed a small cup of water that was sitting on a table to fall out of the cup and trickle onto the floor and Percy willed it to freeze. Cardin, in his blind rage, didn't see the newly formed ice upon the ground and he fell forward in front of Percy. The rest of Team CRDL didn't have enough time to react as they tripped over their humongous leader. The raging boys had very quickly become nothing more than a body of limbs, tangled up on the floor.

Cardin tried to push himself up, but Percy stepped on his hand. The bully looked up only to see Percy's eyes, now the color of a storming sea.

"Let us be very clear Cardin" Percy said coldly "If you try to harm us or anyone else we know..."

Percy then began to move his boot heel back and forth on Cardin's fingers, and the boy grit his teeth, refusing to show pain in front of the whole school.

"It won't be pretty."

Leo then squatted down, becoming eye level with the other boys. He may not have been as scary as Percy, but he certainly wasn't willing to back down.

"And we'll make sure you never touch anyone ever again. Understood?"

All the boys except Cardin shook their heads quickly, while their leader merely glared daggers at the partners.

With their acknowledgement finally made, Percy lifted his boot up off of Cardin's hand and the boy was quick to grab and massage his fingers.

"Good. Now you all should go. You wouldn't want to embarrass yourselves anymore than you already have today." Leo taunted.

The group of boys got up from the floor and turned for the door, trying their best to save face. When they were walking away, Cardin looked at Russel, "I'm gonna kick that boy's ass."

Percy and Leo turned around and made their way back to their table. Team RWBY and JNPR began to cheer for their friends, giving them high fives and first bumps when they sat down.

"That was really brave of you guys." Blake said before the boys even had a chance to sit down.

"It was nothing" Percy said modestly as he placed himself next to Yang.

"We just tried to do the right thing." Leo said proudly.

Then Velvet, the girl CRDL was bullying, spoke up.

"Th… Thank you for helping me" she said quietly.

"Anytime" Percy said happily "If they ever pick on you again, you come get anyone sitting at this table right now and we'll make sure we…"

"Break his legs!" Nora yelled with a crazed look in her eyes.

Everyone at the table eyed Nora for a second then burst out laughing.

Amidst the laughter, Percy turned to the girl, "I'm sorry. I didn't catch your name?"

She reached out her hand, "It's Velvet. Velvet Scarlatina."

"It's nice to meet you Velvet" Percy said with a smile and he shook her hand "I'm Percy Jackson."

"And I'm Leo Valdez! The better looking and funnier member of Beacon's two man Huntsmen team."

Percy rolled his eyes and Velvet covered her mouth with a hand to stop herself from giggling.

Meanwhile, Yang was watching the exchange between the three. She was glad to see Percy had helped Velvet, the Faunas girl clearly appreciating being able to sit and talk amongst friends, even if they were new. However, the thing that surprised Yang was how… intimidating Percy and Leo had been to Team CRDL.

Percy had stomped on Cardin's hand pretty hard, but the bully had deserved it. Sure it may have tinkered on the edge of being cruel, but it was justified. Percy and Leo embarrassed CRDL because what they had done was wrong and they helped a person who needed help. She smiled at that. Percy was brave enough to stand up to Grimm and racists, and that just made him all the more attractive.

* * *

 _ **-Qrow Branwen-**_

Qrow hadn't been expecting Ozpin to recall him back to Beacon. He was hot on the trail of Salem and was close to learning something about her associates. However, when he got the call to come back to Vale with the news that something important had been obtained, Qrow doubled back immediately. He trusted Ozpin, and if ol' Oz found something important, it was worth coming back.

He had gotten in late the night before. About one or two in the morning. It was too late to go see Ruby or Yang and Patch was too far away for Qrow to visit Tai. So he decided to let himself into one of the empty dorm rooms that Beacon had and enjoyed a nice pleasant rest as most of the kiddos started their first day of school. It had been too long since he had slept in a real bed, and Oum knew how long ago since he was here at Beacon with Team STRQ.

At about 8:30, Qrow awoke to his Scrolls alarm clock, his meeting with Oz scheduled for 9. Qrow sat up in the dorm bed that he now realized was much too small for him and he moved his feet out onto the floor and he looked around. Being in a dorm like this brought back lots of memories. Tai's flirting with his sister and Summer making cookies, desperately trying to get everyone on their best behavior. However, Qrow's small smile quickly disappeared as the good memories were washed away by the bad.

Qrow grabbed his flask from the nightstand next to him and took a swig. The familiar burning taste of whiskey sliding down his throat, providing him a small escape from the endless nightmare that was his semblance. He finally stood up from his bed and the reaper ran a hand through his black greasy hair. He moved over into the corner and grabbed his trusty weapon, Harbinger, and slung the enormous sword across his back.

Qrow quietly exited the room and made his way through the familiar halls of Beacon Academy. Once he had made it outside of Ozpin's tower, Qrow took a quick look around. After seeing that there was no one in sight, he took off at run and took a leap into the air. The transformation of turning into a crow had been strange to him at first, but now it was simple to him. Like wielding Harbinger or dealing with Yang when she was on a temper tantrum.

Qrow flew his way up to the top of Ozpin's tower. He circled it once, twice, and then finally landed himself on the third time around. Before Qrow even hit the ground, he was back in his human form and began to strut toward his friends desk.

The headmaster was sitting, going over some paperwork. A bit of steam rose from the fresh hot chocolate that was resting in the mug that was on the table. Qrow's footsteps echoed on the ground, causing Ozpin to glance up. A small smile appeared on Oz's face as he saw one of his closest allies and friends. Oz rose from his seat and made his way over toward Qrow. The headmaster reached out his hand and Qrow grabbed it, firmly shaking it.

"It's good to see you again Oz" Qrow said.

"Likewise my friend" Ozpin replied "I apologize for pulling you out of the field, especially when you were so close to finding something."

Qrow just waved Ozpin's apology off, "It's fine. You know how these things go. More whispers will pop up eventually."

Ozpin nodded at his friend, and grabbed his mug off his desk. Taking a sip before placing the mug back down on the iron and class table.

"We've been lucky Qrow. Very lucky over these past few months." Ozpin said.

"How so?"

"For starters, the first year teams have shown to be resourceful. You should be proud of your nieces."

Qrow gave a small laugh "Little Rose and the Firecracker sure have come a long way. I'm proud of them."

"As you should be" Ozpin said stoically, "However… something else has come into the light. Something that may very well turn the tides in this war."

Qrow raised an eyebrow. "Did we find another maiden?"

"Unfortunately no, we did not. But we found people who share our ideology. Powerful people who's strength has the potential to rival that of a maidens' " Ozpin said cryptically.

"People?" Qrow asked, clearly confused. "Oz what are you getting at?"

At that moment, the elevator door dinged. Qrow and Ozpin turned to face the now opening doors and two teenagers Qrow was unfamiliar with emerged along with Glynda Goodwitch. The kid on the right was tall, easily above six feet, but still shorter than Qrow. He had raven black hair, sea green eyes, and a laid back demeanor, similar to the vibe Tai had given off when he had been a student here. The kid was dressed in a green long sleeve shirt with the sleeves rolled up, revealing a tattoo on the inside of his wrist, a pair of dark blue jeans along with black sneakers.

Next to him, was another teenage boy, except this one was significantly shorter than his counterpart. The teen had curly black hair, brown eyes, and was dressed in a white long sleeve shirt with black suspenders going over both of his shoulders, connected to his brown pants. He was wearing a white pair of shoes that had been dirtied, more than likely from dirt or coal.

"Who are the kids?" Qrow asked.

"We're not kids" the shorter one said "Neither of us have been one for a long time."

"Qrow, this is Leonidas Valdez and Perseus Jackson. Students here who know about our... situation."

"What?!" Qrow yelled as he whipped around to face Ozpin, "Oz you can't be serious. They're kids! You told some random kids about what's at stake?!"

"He didn't tell us all of it." Percy said coming to Ozpin's defense "He wanted to wait until you came back from wherever you were."

"You stay out of it kid" Qrow said harshly "I trust you about as far as I can throw you."

"Qrow you need to be reasonable. They may be able to turn the tide in this fight. They…" Ozpin began but he was cut off by Percy.

"We're part god."

Qrow quickly turned back to face the kid, clearly annoyed "Yeah? If we're playing the make believe game, then I'm the King of Vale."

"He's not lying Qrow" Ozpin pleaded "And given all we've seen and know, could you really dismiss it so easily?"

The reaper let out a sharp breath of air from his nose "I don't believe it Oz. You told me the Brother's of Light and Darkness disappeared after they made humanity. It shouldn't be possible that they came back, let alone had kids? Let me get this straight, you're a godling?"

"You see… that's where it gets complicated." Leo added in.

"Then uncomplicate it" Qrow said harshly.

We're children of gods...from another world" Percy said "Which doesn't really make much sense when we say it out loud."

"Yeah no kidding" Qrow said turning back to Glynda and Ozpin "They're wasting our time. And you might have told them about the most dangerous thing in all of Remnant!"

"Qrow please" Glynda pleaded "Let them try and explain it to you. It is very hard to take in I know, but when they explain it, it will make sense. Of that we promise to you."

Qrow let out a huff and rubbed the bridge of his nose "Fine. Tell us your stupid story then."

"Well like we said, it's complicated." Percy said "But in our world we have a lot of gods who come in lots of different forms. However, there are twelve of them who are significantly more powerful than the rest. They're called the Olympians."

Leo then picked it up from there, "Each Olympian controls aspects of the mortal world. For example, my father is Hephaestus, God of the Forge and Fire. While Seaweed Brain over there is the son of Poseidon, the God of the Sea, Earthquakes, and Horses."

Qrow turned to Ozpin and Glynda, "And how do the two of you know any of this is true?"

"Mister Jackson has shown us his ability to control water, moving it as if it were another appendage of his. And for his unique claim over earthquakes and horses, that was on display for us during his initiation. Glynda if you would?"

The headmaster's right hand gave him a nod and placed her scroll on Ozpin's desk. The Scroll lit up as it successfully synced with the desk and the hologram system that it was paired with. After pressing a few buttons on her scroll, the Good Witch navigated toward the recording of Percy's abilities.

The five in the room watched as the hologram recording of Percy laid his hand on the ground and forced a small, continuous earthquake that kept the ginormous Grimm off balance and allowed Team JNPR to defeat it. The clip then fast forwarded as it showed Percy quickly explaining to Team RWBY and JNPR what his pegasus was before the Nevermore could return.

Upon the revelation of the footage, Qrow was in a bit of a shock. He turned toward the demigods, mouth slightly agape and his eyes wide. "You really are the kids of gods?"

"Half-bloods, if we want to put a name to it" Percy corrected "And yeah we are. It's okay to be shocked, you should be. I know I was when I found out, and I was 12."

"Yeah don't worry about it old man" Leo said as he tried his best to put Qrow at ease "I only found out I was a demigod eight months ago and trust me, it took a lot of getting used to."

"I'm not old" Qrow said as he took out his flask and took a swig "But if you're the kids of gods from another dimension-"

"Another world" Leo pointed out "Another dimension would imply that Remnant is a mirror that parallels our Earth. And that would imply that there are multiple versions where…"

"Dimension, world, parallel whatever!" Qrow said, cutting off Leo's rambling "All I wanna know is how you got here."

Leo and Percy looked at each other. Neither one of them really knew how to explain it, so they'd have to try their best.

"That part is what we don't understand. We think it was some form of magic, but magic is a fickle thing. There is no rule book or guide line for how it works, and last I checked there was no spell for bringing people back from the dead."

Glynda, Qrow, and Ozpin were visibly caught off guard by that.

"You died?" the blonde haired professor asked.

"I did" Percy said solemnly. He then used an arm to lift up shirt, revealing the huge scar that was in the middle of his chest "Stabbed by a monster with my own sword."

"It's true" Leo added "I went to his funeral, but if we want to figure out what happened, I might be able to explain it."

Leo began to dig into his tool-belt that was around his waist and he pulled out his Archimedes Sphere. He tapped it twice before tossing it into the air, where the spheres propulsion system kicked in, keeping it suspended.

"A.S. playback the footage from my last night on Earth before arriving in Remnant."

The machine let out a little beep before displaying an image from the small camera it had built inside of it. The hologram expanded, filling up the entire room to show an image of Leo standing on a hill, holding a shield while speaking to a marble statue of Percy. The footage then began to roll. It showed Leo talking to statue, and as he turned to leave, his right hand began to turn to cinders. It spread throughout his whole body, until he fell to ground, the demigod staring dumbfoundedly at his missing parts. However, the recording shut off and the feed turned to static as the embers crossed his midsection where the Archimedes Sphere was stored on Leo's person.

The group stared dumbfounded at the recording, with no one clearly sure of what had happened.

Qrow was the first to speak and he turned toward Ozpin, "Any ideas?"

The Headmaster had sat down at his desk. His fingers were intertwined and he looked to be thinking hard, but about what, Qrow wasn't sure.

"Oz you with us ?" Qrow said again, albeit somewhat annoyed.

Ozpin peaked his head up, looking at Qrow, "Apologies, but yes I am with you. I have no solution to this, and in all my years I have never seen anything like it."

Qrow was unsatisfied with the answer. Ozpin didn't get lost in thought often, but if he did now, then maybe he was a chance he knew something. However, he made it clear that now wasn't the time to share. Qrow would have to get his answers another day.

"Fine. Well I guess the good thing out of this is that I'm convinced you're who you say you are, and I'm not one to trust easy. But just know I'm going to keep my eye on both of you."

"That's fine with us" Percy said, agreeing to the terms.

"Seconded" Leo added.

Ozpin then leaned back in his chair, sitting up straight. "Gentlemen, as I told you a week ago, there is much more to this world than meets the eye. Evils that threaten to turn this world to ash. But the people in this room, and a few select individuals scattered across the globe know the truth… the horrors hidden behind the curtain."

Ozpin the quickly removed his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose before placing them back on, "But before we continue, I need to know that you're ready to hear it, the truth."

Leo and Percy shared a look, and the two boys nodded their heads.

"I… I need to hear you say it" Ozpin pleaded.

Qrow knew that tone of voice Ozpin had used all too well. It had been the voice he had used when Team STRQ had graduated from Beacon and had been indoctrinated into the fold. Tai-Yang had readily agreed, clearly ready for a new type of challenge. Raven and Qrow had been hesitant, but they had to know what it was. At the time, the only thing that had mattered to them was protecting their tribe. And if Ozpin had known about a dangerous threat, they had to know too.

Lastly, their super leader, Summer Rose, slayer of monsters and baker of amazing cookies, had only agreed because the rest of her teammates had. Like her daughter, Summer only wanted to help people and keep them safe. However, she had been unwilling to make a decision until the rest of her team did. She had felt that her choice carried weight, and she didn't want to influence someone into doing something that they weren't ready to commit to.

Qrow smirked at the memory. It had been so long since they stood there that day, only mere hours after graduating. He had been young and naive, focused only on his teammates and a team leader he had had a crush on for years, but could never act on because of his semblance. Everything had changed for better and for worse when Ozpin had told them and when they had said those damned words.

"We're ready." the duo said in sync.

* * *

 **God I hate having to rewrite the most basic scenes and establish all the rules and introductions of world hoping and all that garbage. I can't wait to get to the juicy parts.**


	5. A Long Awaited Conversation

**Chapter 5** **of The Heroes of Remnant. Re-Write Published as of 6/12/19**

 **Song of the Chapter: Break the Wheel - Composed by Ramin Djawadi**

 **As some of you may note, I have deleted chapters six through nine. Chapters One through Five have been completely updated. Please read those chapters before this or you may be confused. Also who doesn't want to read 50,000+ words of updated material? There will be a author's note at the bottom. Please read for your sake. Happy reading!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own anything you recognize.**

* * *

 ** _-_ _Ozpin_ _-_**

"What...is your favorite fairytale?"

The two young teenagers before him looked to one another. With Leo shrugging his shoulders, and the two turned back to him.

"I heard Blake mention once that she was reading a book about a man with two souls, fighting for control of one body." Percy stated.

"And Ruby told me a bit about the Maidens and how they each represent a season." Leo added "But we haven't really been here long so we don't know _that_ many fairy tales."

Ozpin made no facial expression, merely nodding at what they said to him. "Now what if I told you both of those fairytales were real. That there are in fact, four maidens who wield incredible power without the use of dust. And that there is a man with two souls?"

The pair shared a look between themselves. And the pair shrugged their shoulders in response.

"Well we wouldn't exactly be shocked. Our whole life back home is a fairy tale.'" Leo answered "Every myth always has a bit of truth behind it."

"You could say that again" Qrow said as he took out his flask and took a long gulp.

Ozpin smirked at his friend "Qrow is right. Then I guess you wouldn't be surprised that I'm the man with two souls inside his body?"

Percy and Leo went wide eyed at the Headmaster. Ozpin had been given that look from James, Team STRQ, and Glynda when he had told them. He chuckled to himself, some things never changed, whether he liked it or not.

"Well...I don't think either of us were expecting that" the older demigod said slowly, as he chose his words carefully, "But we deal with freaky stuff all the time."

Ozpin nodded his head, "Good. Then allow me to tell you gentlemen about me and my past; after all, it is what I promised you."

"And we'll hold you to it" Leo confirmed.

The old man took a deep breath, calming himself and his nerves before speaking. Before he revealed the truth.

"In order to understand my ability to reincarnate, I must give you gentlemen a short history lesson."

"Long ago, two gods walked upon Remnant's surface, a being of light and life known as the Older Brother, and a being of darkness and death known as the Younger Brother. These brothers often were in conflict with one another. During the day, the Older would create animals and plants and produce life amongst Remnant, but when night came, the Younger would destroy with fire, famine, and disease."

Percy and Leo nodded their heads, following his story with interest.

"Over time, the Younger Brother became increasingly enraged with Life's return. So he made a decision. To create something so dark, so evil, that it's sole purpose would be to destroy life, no matter what form it took."

"The Creatures of Grimm..." Percy surmised.

"Precisely" Ozpin confirmed "Eventually, the Older Brother grew tiresome of the quarrel between him and his kin. So he approached him with an opportunity, to create something that had the ability to choose. To use their knowledge to either create or destroy. The Younger Brother agreed, and together, they created Humanity."

The teenagers in front of Ozpin were following the Wizard's story with tremendous aplomb and were taking it about as well as he had expected. The claim that they were children of god's had left Ozpin skeptical of the two. Afterall, the Brothers had departed more than a millennia ago, but the claim that they were from another world with other gods was enough to cause some sort of... intrigue. If these teenagers were lying or simply delusional, then they could be handed over to the proper authorities without a problem. But there was still a possibility that they were telling the truth, and no presence of either of them, both cyber and interpersonal, proved that there was some form of truth to their claim that could not simply be overlooked.

Over his many lifetimes, Ozpin had seen many people who were delusional enough to believe they were the descendants of gods, or clever enough to fool the masses into thinking that they were such. The ideology of divine right to conquer and rule over others was a powerful tool that could only be wielded three ways. With complete conviction, manipulation, or the least common of the three, absolute truth. Conviction and manipulation had been found throughout history, Beacon's very own, Professor Oobleck, had put forth a multitude of historically accurate theories that Ozpin could claim to be true off the record, but never publicly endorse without drawing some form of negative attention to himself.

However, the fates of what happened to these self proclaimed children of gods, had become muddled throughout the official history of Remnant. Many either failing out of power to violent coup d'etats, assassinations, or simply hubris in the face of Humanity, Faunas, or the Grimm. However, Ozpin, or Ozma, as he had been called in his previous lives, knew the truth. Occasionally, he had even worked behind the scenes to see the more violent leaders disposed of. A few subtle pushes in the wrong directions saw the cruel ones removed quietly, their legacies tied to a meager paragraph inside obscure history books. But the stronger despots, which Ozpin could not move directly against, fell into a strange oddity with Salem that Ozpin had only partially been able to put together over the years.

Normally, the Queen of the Grimm moved against the young and up-n'-coming despots with a tried and true formula. She would send one of her minions to the new ruler, under the guise as a powerfully ally who had learned to control the Grimm and offer them as servants. The puppet would then flatter them, claiming to recognize them as the 'son or daughter of the true god or goddess of Remnant' and would form an early alliance, with the notion that they would, for a lack of a better term, bet their chips on the winning horse. More often than not, the trap would work to perfection and Salem would entrap them, like a fly in a Black Widow's web. When the time was right, she would eliminate them, and silently amass powerful pawns who could get her closer to obtaining the relics which remained protected in each Huntsman Academy.

However, when it came to the most powerful despots who boasted some form of godhood or legacy to it and denied her pawn an alliance, Salem had a much… different approach. Unlike her more common methods of manipulation to gain what she wanted, Salem had taken it upon herself to see the most powerful ones completely wiped off the face of the earth and all remnants of their history burned to ash. To Ozpin, it seemed very unlike his former… lover, to act like that. She had always been very calm and very calculated. Always measuring her moves carefully and never leaving anything outside of her control.

A small part of him knew what it was… the driving force behind such hatred. The despots who claimed to be godlings reminded her too much of the Brother Gods who had actually walked Remnant, and allowing regular mortals to believe they were that powerful was a direct insult to her. A form of mockery sent by the Older and/or Younger Brother to laugh in her face. In some way, completely destroying them off the face of the Earth gave her some kind of twisted satisfaction. Anybody that believed themselves to be a god would be eliminated by Salem and shown the true power that she possessed as an immortal.

Upon watching Percy and Leo's interactions with himself, classmates, and the staff of Beacon, it cemented the fact that they did not have any ill intent to become despots and conquer Remnant. Like most of the students that came through Beacon, Percy and Leo were honest souls with very different reasons attributing to their desire to become humanity's sword and shield. It would only be a matter of time till their own team's training mission with a professional huntsman in which those motives would be revealed though. But the most important factor was that they possessed abilities necessary to hold Salem at bay.

The footage from spars and training sessions proved that the children had potential; that was something Ozpin could not deny. Percy was skilled with his sword and shield, but had a similar problem that Miss Rose had. For the skill that he had in bladed combat, he struggled in hand to hand. He wasn't as useless as Miss Rose, but it would be foolish to think he had reached his peak. Having a sword that always returned to him, while incredibly handy, could only get him so far.

And Leo, while not a master with his knife like screwdrivers and 'repulsor glove' as he had come to call it, was taking steps in the right direction. It was clear he had been trained by someone who had years of practice, but he could tell Leo was still relatively unskilled. He had done perfectly fine during initiation against the creatures of Grimm, but he had struggled against Russel Thrush in Glynda's combat class. Leo's lack of human to human fighting experience was of concern, with him being on a similar level to that of Jaune Arc. However, that was the benefits of Beacon, it wouldn't be long until these faults were corrected. Like a blade, they would be sharpened and turned into quality huntsmen.

However what the pair lacked, they made up for with their impressive godly abilities and their control of their fathers' domains. Percy's display of control over water was stupendous and his ability to create earthquakes and speak to his pegasus was intriguing, and Leo's control over fire and metalworking ability was just as phenomenal as his partner.

This is why this conversation now was so important. Never before had Ozpin had descendents of Gods on his side. They were a new piece on the board, and a piece whose was still unknown. If only he could've asked Jinn about them. Alas he could not, but that was perfectly fine. She resided safely under Haven Academy, waiting patiently inside the Relic of Knowledge.

Ozpin cleared his throat and continued, "Upon their departure, they left Remnant's affairs to the creatures that walked its surface. However, the Gods left behind four objects, relics if you will. And each relic embodied one of the four gifts the Gods gave to humanity: Choice, Knowledge, Creation, and Destruction."

"Salem's goal is to collect these four relics and destroy the world" he stated "Our main priority is to protect the Relics at all cost, and eventually find a way to end Salem."

At Ozpin's finish, the room became quiet. It was obvious that Leo and Percy were still processing the information, but they were clearly handling it better than Glynda when he first told her. Percy was the first to break the silence that had fallen over the room.

"Why... don't we tell everyone about Salem?" he questioned "It certainly feels like if we had every pair of eyes in the world looking for her, we could find her and stop her before she even got close to a relic."

Before Ozpin could answer, Qrow spoke up.

"It's not that simple. Telling people would only cause a panic. The idea of knowing that someone can control the Grimm would only cause people to become even more afraid than they already are. Looting, murder, and corruption would run rampant as people would fight and scratch to try and find any form of self security. And with that, the Grimm would run rampant, making their way to settlements and destroy whatever was unfortunate enough to be in their way. Maybe the walled strongholds of the Kingdoms would remain, but we can't risk it."

Ozpin felt the faintest of smiles creep onto his face. He was pleased with Qrow's answer. He had taught him well and everyday, Qrow continued to show that he was committed to protecting Remnant. He had certainly come a long way from the awkward, storky looking boy who had first entered Beacon all those years ago.

"Okay so then what about the Maidens?" Percy asked "I get that they're powerful, but why do you have one in a coma down in your basement?"

Ozpin almost scolded the boy. Amber, while challenging to reel in due to her desire for independence, did not deserve to be spoken ill of.

"As I said before, the maidens are blessed with extraordinary power. Four of them, meant to possess the power of the seasonz. However, they also serve another purpose. Each maiden is the key to unlocking the vault the relics are protected by."

"So then I'm guessing that the girl, Amber, is the Maiden who can open Beacon's vault?"

"Correct Mister Valdez."

"So then it shouldn't be a problem right? If she's hidden in one of the most secure places in Remnant, why don't we keep her there and hope she makes a full recovery?"

Qrow answered from his left. "That's wishful thinking kid. Even if we did that, there are still problems. What if she flat lines? And we can't forget what happens to the power if she dies."

A puzzled look crossed the pair's faces.

"What happens to the power?" Percy asked.

Ozpin stepped in to answer, "When a maiden dies, their power is transferred. Usually to the last person in their thoughts- if it's a woman. However, if it's not a woman, then the power randomly selects a woman to attach itself to."

"But you said that Amber was attacked by someone. And if that person was in Amber's final thoughts…" Percy said as he began to connect the dots.

"Then the power would transfer to said attacker" Leo finished for his partner, as he caught on as well. He then let out a long, low sounding whistle, "Jeez you're really in a pickle here now aren't you?"

" _We're_ in a pickle now" Ozpin corrected as he folded his hands together, "But that's not all. While it's not the first time a maiden has been attacked in order to gain their power, this was through an unconventional mean. For the first time in recorded history, Amber had _half_ of her maiden power stolen."

Leo and Percy both did a double take at Ozpin's words.

"How is that even possible?" Percy asked, but it was clear he was still struggling to understand. The demigods were out of their element, that much was clear.

"We're not sure" Qrow answered, slightly irked because they really had no clue. "But it's put us between a rock and a hard place. If we don't act, there's the chance Amber's power will transfer to the person who stole half, and the power of the maiden along with her ability to open the vault, will be in the wrong hands."

"So what is our solution then? What do we do?" Percy asked, clearly trying to be proactive.

Qrow and Ozpin shared a look.

"Right now we have a few ideas" Ozpin answered as he turned back to the two "But communication between the headmasters and what to do next has become rather… difficult. Each knows of their importance. The Headmaster of Atlas has been ever vigilant… maybe a little too excitable when it comes to his reports."

Qrow let out a snort but Ozpin elected to ignore it.

"The Headmaster of Haven in Mistral has been missing his deadlines as of late, but it is not unlike him to fail to report in. And the Headmaster of Shade Academy in Vacuo is well... frustrating. Getting them to do anything there is almost impossible, but I trust that the headmaster is keeping up with their duties."

"What Oz is trying to say is that when we're ready to act, he'll let you know." Qrow surmised.

"Precisely" Ozpin agreed "But for now, we have tasks for you. Things that need to be taken care of quietly and under the radar."

"You want us to be hitmen?!" Leo said excitedly.

Qrow let out another snort, but this one was much louder. Meanwhile, Percy facepalmed at the younger demigods exuberance. A small smile crossed Ozpin's face, but was quickly replaced by a serious look that meant he was all business.

Leo recognized the look on Ozpin's face and realized that was not what he meant.

"My bad." Leo said "Ruby has been talking about the remastered Hitman game and she got me really into it. Anyways continue."

"As I was saying…" Ozpin continued, slightly eyeing Leo with a look of amusement before shifting his attention to the both of them. "According to your specific skills, we have things that need to be done. Opportunity that cannot go to waste."

Ozpin then shifted his gaze to Leo, "Mister Valdez, I need you to take a look at Amber's stasis pod when you have free time. I have some modifications that need to be made and while Professor Oobleck has done well at finishing them, his workload has increased drastically because of the start of the academic year. I intend for you to become our head engineer on this project. So please use discretion when it comes to this."

He then looked toward Percy, "And as for you Mister Jackson, I want you to tag along with Qrow for a few select missions. The work we do cannot always be solved with muscle and might, so a few lessons on being stealthy and using a more delicate touch certainly wouldn't hurt."

Percy and Leo shared a look and nodded in agreement. They then turned back to face the esteemed Headmaster.

"I think we can do that Headmaster" Percy said as he reached out his hand.

Ozpin smiled lightly and reached out as well, shaking the demigods hand across the desk. The two let go after a couple of seconds and the process was repeated with Leo. Once that was finished, the pair made their way to Qrow where they extended their hands.

"Uh, I'm good" Qrow said as he dismissed the demigods "not really the handshake type."

"Oh thank gods" Percy said with relief "I hate formalities."

With that the demigods headed to the elevator and pressed the down button. Immediately, the doors binged open and the demigods slipped inside.

Once the demigods had finally left, Qrow turned to Ozpin.

"They're not too bad" Qrow admitted. "But I certainly don't think they'll be the next Team STRQ."

Ozpin let out a chuckle, "Maybe not, but they don't even have a real team yet. Personally, I have my money on Team RWBY to surpass STRQ."

Qrow cracked a small smile, "You're not wrong there. They'll make us proud. I'm sure of it."

"I certainly hope so Qrow… I really do."

* * *

 _ **-Perseus Jackson-**_

Percy quietly closed the door to his dorm room, making sure that the wood would not creak. When he turned around, Leo was sprawled on his bed. The son of Hephaestus was running his fingers through his curly dark hair, more than likely trying to wrap his head around the information overload which was that meeting with Ozpin and Qrow. He made his way over to his desk chair and pulled it out, taking a seat for himself. Percy let out a deep breath and began to massage his temples as he leaned on the desk. After a few minutes of quiet thinking to themselves, Leo broke the silence.

"You think he was telling the truth?"

"I think he was" Percy said. He then took a second to think before speaking again, "But it's still all so hard to believe. The Grimm have a master? Not even Kronos, or even Gaea had that kind of control over monsters."

"And don't forget she wants to destroy the world" Leo added in.

Percy groaned and began to massage his temples, "Don't even remind me."

He then moved his hands away from his temples and lightly slapped his face twice with his hands and stood up. The elder demigod walked over toward his dresser drawers and began to pull out workout clothes. Percy knew that if he sat at his desk and thought about everything Ozpin had told him, he'd go absolutely insane. He needed to do something, and it wasn't like Beacon had a lake he could just sit in.

He quickly got changed and made his way over to the door, "Leo I'm gonna hit the gym. I shouldn't be gone too long."

Leo didn't even look up from the issue of X-Ray and Vav he had begun to read before replying.

"Have fun sweetie, remember to stretch so you don't pull a muscle."

Percy rolled his eyes as he grabbed the handle. He pulled the door open and made his way through the frame. However, he ran into something and a small squeak was heard followed by the groan of said squeaker hitting the floor. He quickly whipped his head downward and he gazed at Ruby Rose laying dazed on the floor.

"Ruby?" Percy asked tentatively "Are you okay?"

Ruby let out a groan "Yeah I'm okay. But it feels like I got run over by a Boarbatusk."

Percy tried to muffle his laughter. He certainly didn't mean to have Ruby bounce off of him, but he couldn't deny that it was funny. He reached out a hand to help her up, and she readily accepted it.

"Is there something I can help you with Ruby?"

"Oh right!" Ruby said excitedly "Is Leo here? I need to ask him something of the utmost importance. But it's official leader stuff so you can't hear."

"Yeah he's here" Percy said.

He began to take a step to move out of he way before he did a double take. "Wait... leader stuff? I'm the leader between-"

However, before Percy could finish, he heard Ruby shout a quick 'Thanks Percy' and zip into the room behind him, the door closing as she went and a sign made out of paper stuck to it with tape. He peered at the piece of paper and it read in big red letters, **IMPORTANT LRJ MEETING! KEEP OUT**!" and in tinier words underneath it that read _That means you Weiss!_

Percy stared at the door for a second, shook his head, and turned to head for the gym, mumbling under his breath about how he was the Team leader and not Leo.

* * *

 _ **-Jason Grace-**_

Jason was sitting on a fallen log in the middle of a Louisiana bog. Sweat was on his brow and the son of Jupiter was focused on a small photo he was holding in his hand. As he looked at the photo, a mosquito landed on his arm, but before it could adopt its more vampire like tendencies, he lazily sent a small wave of electricity through his body, zapping the mosquito. The fried bug fell off his arm, and Jason continued to stare at the photo.

After a few more minutes of reminiscing, Jason let out a groan and used his other hand to rub his face. However, the demigod heard the crack of a fallen tree branch behind him breaking and he sprung up, photo away and his gladius now in hand, freshly pulled from the sheath that was slung across his back.

Jason eyed the surrounding area cautiously. Monsters had a habit of trying to be sneaky, but if he had learned anything in his sixteen years of being a demigod, it was that they could be easily taunted. Assuming it was a lesser monster, it would be a piece of cake. But on the off chance it was a stronger one, it might provide some sort of challenge for Jason.

"Come on out!" Jason yelled into the dense, swampy marsh "Let's not drag this out any longer than it has to be!"

Nothing came in response but Jason remained on guard. His eyes dashed between bushes and trees, trying to find any form of movement. After a little while longer and no movement from a potential enemy, Jason lowered his guard and chuckled to himself. Grover had told him he had been way too on edge lately. Maybe it was his emotions running on high.

However, Jason was back on edge as quickly as ever when he heard the sound of bow string draw from behind him. He quickly spun around, his gladius now in a reverse grip. He watched as an arrow shot out from the tree line, coming directly for his chest. He quickly side stepped to the right, and lunged his sword arm forward. The blade, now horizontal- slashed forward, connecting with the arrow. The Imperial Gold of the weapon made contact with through the arrows tip, slicing through the shaft like a hot knife in butter. When it finally reached the end, the two halves split off and lodged themselves into a tree behind him.

"You're gonna have to do better than that!" Jason yelled in the direction of where the arrow had been fired.

Instead of a grunt or roar of rage like Jason had been expecting, he heard a laugh instead. The laugh was obviously female and Jason lowered his sword, recognizing it. He hadn't heard that laugh in a while, but he smiled as the figure emerged from the tree line. The person who stood before him was the Lieutenant of Artemis, daughter of Zeus, and most importantly, his sister, Thalia Grace.

Jason reached up and put his sword back in the sheath on his back, a smile on his face as he watched his sister come closer.

"You know" Jason said flatly "There are nicer ways to announce your arrival. For example, 'hey baby brother, it's me! Thalia!"

Thalia laughed a bit "Pfft, where's the fun in that? Besides, I had to keep you on your toes. Can't have you out here getting rusty."

"I think I'll be okay" Jason said as he motioned to the split arrow lodged in the tree behind him "Or maybe you're not as good with a bow as a lieutenant of Artemis should be."

"Bows are stupid" Thalia mumbled under her breath "My spear and Aegis are way more fun to use."

Jason chuckled once and shook his head at his sister, "Why are you here Thalia? It's not like you to take random trips into the Southland. Unless Artemis has you hunting something, which I would be more than willing to lend a hand with."

His sister shook her head, "No, I'm not here for Artemis. I'm here for you Jason. What are _you_ doing here?"

He eyed his sister carefully and he spoke slowly, rehearsing the lines he had repeated over and over again in his head. "I'm here because I'm doing what's asked of me as Pontifex Maximus. The major river god who resides in the Mississippi River needs multiple shrines to properly satisfy him. Grover and a few of the other fauns in the area are helping-"

"Cut the crap Jason" Thalia said sharply as she cut him off "You and I both know that's just a cover. You've been looking for something."

"I'm not looking for anything" Jason said calmly.

"Don't lie to me. You've been looking for Leo again, haven't you?"

"I-" Jason began, but he paused. He let out a breath and ran his hand through his hair "Yes I have been. But Thalia listen! I have a real lead this time. There have been whispers of fires starting randomly in Louisiana and California. One of them has to be him!"

Thalia just shook her head, "Jason... we've been over this. Leo is gone. It's been months since he's disappeared. Nico went to Hades and confirmed it. Him and Percy-"

Thalia bit her lip at the mention of Percy. Jason hadn't known it until Will Solace had told him, but Thalia and Percy had been close... essentially siblings. It didn't hurt Jason to hear that. It's not like it was her fault that she had begun to fill a hole in her life with another brother figure. She didn't know that Jason was alive, and he couldn't blame her for it.

"He and Leo are in the Underworld… Elysium." Thalia said as she collected herself "Stop looking for things that aren't there."

"But Thalia something isn't right!" Jason pleaded "Nico and Hazel can't summon them for us to talk… to say goodbye! Nico was able to summon Bianca for a while before she chose rebirth, and there's no way either would choose that, at least not right away."

"Jason stop!" Thalia yelled, cutting off her brother's rambling.

"You-" she paused, collecting herself "You need to go back to California. School at Edgraton starts soon and you need to go back. You need to put your demons to rest. Please Jason."

Jason winced at that. He had been putting off thinking about that damned school. California had been filled with hope and dread for Jason. Hope in the sense that Leo might actually be there, but dread because of what he had learned, and where his ex-girlfriend, Piper, resided.

Piper had been apparently been having self-confidence issues about their relationship and Jason had absolutely been blindsided when she said they needed to break up. She had told him that the relationship between them had been forced by Hera and Aphrodite, and she needed time to figure things out.

Jason understood. Hell, when she had broke the news to him he could barely utter a word, only nodding as she spoke. He wouldn't deny her logic; Hera and Aphrodite _had_ meddled in their lives, and in turn, forced their relationship. To Piper, she had mistaken comfort and solace in Jason for romantic love, and Jason had been the one to feel the sting of it once the Giant Crisis had been over.

After the break up, Jason just… needed space. He transferred to Edgraton Day and Boarding School, joined the Lacrosse Team along with Speech and Debate, and according to his teachers, he had a real shot at attending a prestigious university in California. Things had finally started to be on the mend upward, until Piper showed up out of the blue one day, saying that she had been in contact with Annabeth. She had given him a quick breakdown before heading off. They had gotten word from Apollo, now mortal as punishment from his father, and his quest to reclaim the five ancient prophetic sites across the world. There was evidence of a reformed Labyrinth, leading the way to the Sybil, the ancient Roman Prophet who wrote the Sibylline Books.

So naturally, the pair went after Sybil. They investigated the Labyrinth and when he and Piper became separated, Jason found the prophet. But of course, the Fates had to ruin his life. Sybil told him, that if he or Piper went after her again, one of them would not make it out alive. So Jason fled. He made it out of the Labyrinth after finding Piper, and he told her he didn't find anything. He knew that Piper saw right through him. Regardless if Jason wanted to admit it or not, she knew him better than anyone else and it was only a matter of time till she came to him demanding answers.

After that fiasco, Jason took time off and away from California, opting to meet with Grover back East. They worked together to help recognize the lesser nature gods, traveling up and down the coast seeing to it that they were satisfied and that nature was as it should be. However, Grover had headed to Camp Half Blood a few days ago to reconnect with his girlfriend Juniper, before heading to California. The Lord of the Wild taking it upon himself to help nature recover from the devastating wildfires there.

Jason didn't want to go back to California. He really didn't. Sure school was entertaining, but when that wasn't there to distract him, he felt empty. Life had changed so much for him and not in a good way. Frank and Hazel had been together, the pair working with Reyna to help New Rome recover. Annabeth was away on Mount Olympus, her architecture distracting her from her loss. Leo and Percy, two of his best friends, had disappeared and died respectively. And Piper, the girl Jason thought was the love of his life, walked out on him, with the belief that their relationship wasn't real. And the worst part about it was that Jason couldn't tell her how much she really meant to him. It wouldn't be fair to guilt her like that, especially with all the things she was dealing with. So that left Jason with one option: to keep it all bottled up. It hurt Jason and he hated feeling so alone, and Thalia clearly didn't understand that.

"I don't want to go back Thals. At least not yet" Jason answered as he try to keep his cool "It just... doesn't feel like home."

Thalia rolled her eyes, "You've said that about everywhere. Camp Halfblood, New Rome, your boarding school." Thalia said as she listed off places on her fingers "Where is home Jason? Please, tell me."

Jason glared at his sister. She was pushing him and grilling him for answers he didn't have. Nowhere felt like home. Everything was just… empty.

"I… don't know" Jason said, trying to escape from his sister's questioning.

"Come on Jason!" Thalia said as she lost her cool and began to yell at him "Answer me! Where is home!"

"I…" Jason started but he couldn't get the words out. He _hated_ this. This feeling of emptiness. The people he cared about were gone. He had saved the world twice, but it didn't matter. The people closest to him had walked out, moved on, or died. He could feel the anger building in his chest.

"Say something!" Thalia continued to scream "Spit it out!"

With that, Jason snapped. He could feel the wind picking up around him and the feeling of electricity surging through his veins.

"I don't have a home!" Jason yelled at his sister "Everyone is gone! Piper walked out, Percy and Leo are both probably dead. I feel like I'm back to being on my own again, only this time there is no fall back. No place I can go where I can just… connect with people like I used to."

"Finally you say something." Thalia mocked "You're not on your own Jason. You have people who still care about you."

"You don't get it Thalia. You really don't." Jason spat "There's nowhere to turn. I can't bother Frank and Hazel, they're busy enough as it is. Annabeth has barely started to recover, and I only see Will and Nico once every other month or so."

Thalia glared at him, hurt in hidden behind the anger "You're really going to say that to me? What about me? I've been here for you."

"No you haven't !" Jason shot back "You've been running around the US playing huntress! I've only seen you twice since you found out I was even _alive_. Seems like you'd rather spend time hunting than even check in on me. Hell, even when I iris messaged you that Piper had broken up with me, you hit me with the 'damn that sucks' and asked me if she would think about joining the Hunters. Who does that!?"

Thalia cringed and Jason knew he had got her there. Thalia had done a poor job of trying to reconnect with Jason. After all that talk at Pike's Peak, she had proven it to be nothing more than empty words. Her commitment to the Hunt and Artemis clearly more important than the last mortal family she had left.

"Jason I…" Thalia tried to speak, but Jason cut her off.

"Save it Thalia. You're just trying to cover your own ass now. You haven't been family to me. Leo and Percy were more family to me than you _ever_ were."

As soon as the words escaped Jason's mouth he knew he had crossed a line. He was angry at her, and rightfully so, but he shouldn't have been taking it out on Thalia. It wasn't her fault. None of it was.

The wind that had begun to howl instantly subsided as Jason tried to apologize, "Thalia! Wait! I'm sorry! I didn't mean it. I swear, I was just -"

Thalia just shook her head, her face ridden with a horrible mixture of anger and sadness he never wanted his sister to feel.

"Whatever Jason. You spoke your peace and if you really feel that way, I'll leave" Thalia said, her voice deathly neutral.

She began to turn around "If you think you don't have a home with me, then you really have run out of options."

"Thalia wait!" Jason said as he called out to her, but it was too late. His sister had retreated into the tree line and Jason knew there was no way he could find her unless she wanted to be found. His fingers began to ball into a fist. His anger and bone-headedness had caused him to burn another bridge, and this one might have been beyond repair.

He let his legs give out from underneath him and he fell onto his back. He looked up to the sky and let out a sharp breath. Why did his life have to be so hard? He knew the life of the hero was that, but after the war against Gaea, things had only gotten worse. Back then, Jason had hope - hope that things would get better. But the Fates must have made it their personal mission to make his life as bleak as possible, and they had certainly done a good job at it.

Jason ran his hands through his short blonde hair. He needed help, and he needed to talk things out with someone. There weren't many people left in his life who he could turn too, but there were a few back in New York… back in Camp Half Blood. He needed one of his few remaining friends. He needed to see Nico di Angelo.

* * *

 _ **-Yang Xiao Long-**_

Yang threw her towel around her shoulders and made her way toward Beacon's gym. Yang had made it her mission to go every day and to work on her technique. Her dad had drilled her before she left for Beacon to never forget the fundamentals. Her fighting style revolved around boxing, and while her semblance allowed her to dish out punishment, it didn't mean she would just take every punch that came her way. She'd do what she had to do in order to win.

Along with wanting to work on fundamentals, Yang needed a chance to clear her head. Living with three other girls, while fun, was starting to get annoying. There was no personal time and Weiss's grating attitude, mixed with Ruby's childishness, and Blake's brooding meant Yang needed to get away. She needed time to think and she was hoping the gym would provide her some much needed solitude.

She was about to walk into the gym when she heard a noise coming from inside and Yang groaned in response. There was really nothing better than an empty gym to work out in, and having to share it was not something she really wanted to deal with right now. She let out a huff and peered around the corner quietly, looking inside to see who she'd have to share with. As soon as her lilac eyes connected with who she'd be sharing with, they lit up in a pleasant surprise. Inside was Beacon's bad boy, Percy Jackson, working by himself on the bench press, lifting an impressive amount of weight.

Yang giggled a bit and rolled her eyes at the thought of the stupid nickname the student body had forced upon him. Ever since he had been the one to punch Cardin that day in the dining hall when he and Leo stood up to him and his team, everyone thought he was a troublemaker. If she was being honest though, the entire school had completely and absolutely mislabeled him. After hanging out with him and being apart of his immediate circle of friends, Yang could confirm he was in fact, a huge sweetheart.

After a rough few days of classes for Ruby, Percy had gone out of his way to make chocolate chip cookies for her younger sister - albeit the blue cookies were a strange oddity, entertained Nora in the library when RWBY and JPR were desperately scrambling to finish Port's surprise group project, and he had done something to earn Blake's stamp of approval - which was something Yang wasn't quite sure she had earned herself. However, if the least social and trusting member of Team RWBY could trust Percy, then that spoke volumes about him and his character.

She pulled her head back away from the corner and quickly fixed her hair, and then she headed into the gym. Percy didn't notice her as she walked in. He was was in the middle of finishing his rep and when he was done, he placed the bar back where it belonged. Instead of sitting up though, he stayed down and closed his eyes, resting from the exercise he had just done. A mischievous look appeared in Yang's eyes. She crept up toward where he was laying and once she was above him, she prepared herself.

"PERCY!" Yang screamed at the top of her lungs.

She got the desired effect from Percy, the teenager's eyes opening quickly and the panicked look on his face made him look like a deer caught in the headlights. However, what she wasn't expecting was for Percy to shoot up from his restful spot on the bench and accidentally slam his head into the bar above him. Percy recoiled back and fell off the bench, his hands moving to cover the spot where he had banged his head. Yang had to take a quick step back to get out of his way and she was trying her hardest not to laugh.

"Oh my gods" Yang said, failing to maintain her laughter "Are- are you okay?"

Percy let out a groan, "Well I was. Then _somebody_ had to go and scream in my ear!"

"I'm sorry! You're just such an easy target. If anything it's your fault I did it."

Percy picked himself up and sat on the bench before looking at Yang. One hand covered his forehead and the other on his thigh. However this time he was careful enough to avoid the bar, "My fault? I'm not the one who goes out of my way to scare people."

"Then you should've been more alert" Yang said teasingly. It was then Yang noticed that Percy was still covering his bruise with his hand and she became curious, "Why haven't you healed it yet?"

Percy continued to rub his forehead softly. "What are you talking about?" he said somewhat annoyed "This bruise is gonna take forever to go away."

Yang rolled her eyes, "Use your aura dummy. That's what it's there for."

"My aura?" Percy said somewhat confused, and then a look of realization appeared on his face. "OH my aura. Well about that. I don't exactly… have it?"

Yang had to do a double take when Percy said that. "Wait, wait, wait, hold up." Yang said as she motioned for him to stop talking "You don't have an aura and you made it into Beacon? How?!"

He just shrugged his shoulders, "I don't know. I guess just being careful? I must've impressed Ozpin enough to make it in without aura."

Yang was flabbergasted. Never before had she heard of someone getting into Beacon without an aura. However, it was impressive, she couldn't deny it. Her own fighting style revolved around her aura and her semblance. She needed to take a few hits in order to dish it back ten fold. But then again, Percy was by no means the hand to hand fighter that she was, the same way she couldn't use a sword and shield the same way he or Pyrrha could.

But for some reason though, Yang couldn't get over it. Percy was a deadly fighter, every student at Beacon was, but something about him just seemed to be amplified by his lack of aura. The few times Yang had completely lost her aura during a fight, which had been few and far in between, she had gotten reckless and something she would never admit out loud - afraid. Aura was a part of her, and it was always there, ready to shield her from some sort of danger. But for Percy to come so far with only his sword, shield, and skill to carry him? That took balls.

"Doesn't that… bother you though?" Yang asked "I feel naked when my aura falls below fifteen percent. I can't imagine being without it. And how do you even fight Grimm without it? Aren't you afraid you'll get hurt?"

He just shrugged his shoulders, "I'm not really afraid of getting hurt per say" Percy said as he lifted his up the bottom corner of his shirt, showing a pair of jagged scars near his waistline, "Getting hurt was always a danger, but I'd rather be the one to suffer than the people I care about."

Yang eyed the wound, curious as to what it could have been from. It wasn't a large scar, maybe the size of a large eraser, but Yang had learned never to ask people about their scars. She had learned the hard way when she had joked with Weiss about her's.

But what Percy said was modest. It was a noble thing to put yourself in harms way for others and take both the metaphorical and literal bullet for them. Yang was sure she'd do the same with her friends, but it also had a different dynamic. It was different… jumping in front of a friend when you have aura versus no aura..

Then an idea popped into her head. "Do you… want me to unlock your aura?"

Percy eyed her for a few seconds, before nodding his head. Yang gave him a small smile and moved to sit on the workout bench Percy was still sitting on. She sat on it, and motioned for Percy to come closer. He nodded his head and followed. Once he was close enough, Yang reached out with both hands, placing on the side of his face and the other on top of his heart.

"Hopefully I do this right... " Yang muttered quietly.

"Wait what?" Percy said but he was interrupted by Yang closing her eyes and speaking.

"For it is in passing that we achieve strength. Through this, we become a beacon of light and life as we stand for others. Infinite in power and unbound by death, I release your soul, and by my heart, empower thee."

As soon as Yang finished speaking, she opened her eyes and was greeted by the sight of a soft sea green glow encasing Percy's body. Yang glanced upward to the bruise that was on Percy's forehead and was pleased to see that the it slowly disappearing, his skin changing back from a dark bruise to its natural tan color.

Yang looked to look at Percy, and she had to suppress a giggle when her classmate's eyes were squeezed shut, as if waiting for some type of blow. She had to admit, it was kinda cute.

"Percy" Yang said calmly "It's done now. You can open your eyes."

It took him a second, but he opened his eyes to catch the final few moments of his aura encasing his body. He stared at his hands as the soft glow began to disappear, and then light disappeared completely.

Percy's eyes then jumped up to Yang and he had the biggest, goofiest smile on his face, "That was amazing! How do I bring it back?"

This time, Yang laughed out loud. Percy's eagerness was akin to that of a kid on the morning of Winter Solstice when they were opening their presents under the tree.

"It's pretty easy" Yang said as she stood up and Percy followed her movement. Yang then spread her feet apart getting into a ready position, "In order to use your aura, you need to know how to flare it."

Percy watched intently as Yang raised her hands into a boxer's stance. She flexed her muscles slightly and a yellow glow covered her body. She was pleased to see that Percy was absolutely fascinated by the display, drawing it in with intrigue.

"Okay okay, let me try it" Percy said as he stood up. He mimicked the position Yang was in and he took a deep breath. He attempted to flex his muscles, but unlike the blonde bombshell in front of him who's aura flared to life instantly and was sustained, Percy's flickered slightly over his chest once, twice, and then died out. The hero tried again, but was met with more pathetic results than from the first time, his aura only flickering once before going out.

Percy glanced up toward Yang, the look of excitement on his face long gone and replaced with one of frustration "Is that supposed to happen?"

"Hmm" Yang said as she used her hand to rub her chin, "Well performance issues are… not uncommon. Usually one out of five."

Percy scowled at Yang and the blonde couldn't help but smirk.

"That was so not funny" Percy replied.

Yang laughed "Yes it was and you know it. You're just lucky everyone else wasn't here to see it."

She then stopped messing with Percy and became a bit more understanding, "But seriously, don't worry too much. Everyone is different when it comes to aura control and discovering their semblance. It didn't take me long to figure out mine, and it even took Ruby awhile too. Don't stress about it too much."

Percy just huffed, but nodded his head. "I'll take your word for it."

He then began to head over to the punching bag that was hanging in the air. He got behind the bag and looked to Yang who hadn't followed.

"Are you just gonna stand there or do you wanna come over here and punch something?" Percy said to her.

Yang smiled a bit, and made her way over, grabbing a roll of tape from a counter as she did. She began to wrap up her hands as she'd done a million times before, and Percy got behind the bag, holding it in place for her. Once she had stretched a bit and gotten loose, Yang began to hit the punching bag, letting go of her stress from the first week of school.

As Yang continued to bounce on her toes and let loose on the piece of equipment, she was aware that Percy was eyeing her and her form. His eyes darted from her footwork to her head, clearly intrigued by her ability to bob and slip as she lashed out at her imaginary opponent. She threw a right - left - right combo into the bag before easing off and taking a breather. Percy loosened his grip on the bag, choosing to lean on it instead.

"That was pretty cool" Percy surmised.

Yang chuckled "What? You've never boxed before?"

He shook his head, "Nah, not really. I've been in the occasional scrap or two, but I've been fighting with my sword for forever, and fighting against monsters with just your fists usually doesn't work out too well when you don't have a pair of high powered shotgun-gauntlets to help out."

"Touche" Yang conceded. Then an idea popped into her head, "Do you wanna learn how to box?"

"Well I know some stuff already, but experience is the best teacher. Why don't we go a few rounds and see how I do?"

Yang snickered a bit at that, "Really Percy? I think it might be a little unfair. I've been boxing my whole life, and you're probably gonna get your butt whooped."

She was met though with Percy wrapping his hands in tape, the same as she did. She raised an eyebrow. It wasn't everyday she got challenged to a friendly spar, especially by someone who admitted they had little to no experience. Percy moved on to the mat below them, shaking out his arms and getting loose before getting into a fighting stance.

Yang let out an amused huff of air and brought her hands together, cracking her knuckles.

"Alright if you say so."

* * *

 **First off: Major apologies for waiting so long for any type of new material regarding this story. Only an unfortunate series of event can be used to explain my absence. As for the story (if you haven't noticed) most of the changes revolve around 1) pacing, 2) examining inner thoughts, 3) emphasis on world building, and 4) miscellaneous changes. Below I will discuss changes at length.**

 **Pacing** **: One of the BIGGEST issues I had with the story was that I had terribly paced it. In the original story, Percy and Yang were dating by like chapter Seven and Eight. Which (while time lines in RWBY can be confusing) is estimated to be about a month or two. Percy and Annabeth were practically soulmates and it takes significant amount of time for a lover to recover from what was essentially a forced break up between the two. As for Leo and Ruby, the writing is on the wall for them to potentially become a thing, but you never know. I wanted romance in this story to be more akin to a slow burn, but after reading back on it, it was a hundred meter sprint.**

Inner Thoughts **: After reading back the early chapters of this story, I realized there was too much dialogue/description of action and little to know inner thoughts. The things that make good fanfiction stories rise to greatness is when authors can really get into the head of their characters and accurately portray how they would think and react in their given situations. Something I struggled with is that I pushed characters in a certain direction that violated KEY elements that shouldn't have been broken. And I did this simply because I wanted to advance my own plot, a common error that most authors make. For example, Ruby and Jaune will ALWAYS be each others first friends, Weiss and Blake will ALWAYS argue about the White Fang, and Renora will be canon in whatever story you read, either strongly platonic or romantic, etc. So with this story and the edits, I felt I needed to do a better job at understanding each character, along with their motivations. Ultimately, once this story finally gets caught up with the other edits (I have three chapters waiting on stand by to be published. They just need a final proofread) it will be great at examining inner monologue and reasons as to why characters do what they do.**

 **World Building** : **RWBY has a humongous world to work with. I'm going to try my best to dive in and delve into its history, Grimm behavior, aura use, the role of huntsmen in society as more than Grimm killers, relationship between Kingdoms, social norms (such as bastards in the kingdoms and the Faunus). There will be a lot to see so stay tuned.**

 **Miscellaneous : Percy has a new sword cause I got bored of Riptide (sorry not sorry), his combat suit is basically a black version of Captain America's Winter Solider Stealth suit, Leo has a repulsor glove (think of Tony Stark when he fights Bucky after Zola breaks him out of prison), Leo's dream sequence (which I guess is meant to amplify Leo's fear).**

 **That's all for now folks. Hope you enjoyed and feel free to leave a review.**

 **PS: I will not tolerate anyone who comments hateful things. Someone left a review saying that they were furious Nico and Will were gay and told me to change it or they would stop reading the story. All I have to say for that is go fuck yourself. Love is love and I'm not gonna tolerate any hateful shit. Go read a different story.**


	6. Another Day - Another Dollar

**Chapter Six of The Heroes of Remnant. Re-Write Published as of 7/1/2019**

 **Song of the Chapter: Mr. Blue Sky - Electric Light Orchestra**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own anything that you recognize.**

* * *

 _ **\- Ruby Rose -**_

"Hear ye, hear ye! I call this summit to order!" Ruby exclaimed as she banged her small gavel on the desk in front of her, "May the honorable delegates of Team JNPR and Team LP _**(pronounced Leopard)**_ present themselves to our first annual Team Leader Summit!"

Jaune stood up from the seat to her left, "The honorable delegate Jaune Arc acknowledges this meeting. I represent the interests of Team JNPR, consisting of Pyrrha Nikos, Lie Ren, and Nora Valkyrie."

Once finished he took his seat, and Leo stood up. "The honorable delegate Leonidas Valdez acknowledges this meeting. I am here to represent Beacon's two man squad, Team LP, consisting of Leonidas Valdez and Perseus Jackson."

Ruby nodded her head and cleared her throat before speaking, "Honorable delegates, I am Ruby Rose, I represent Beacon's most promising up-and-coming group, Team RWBY! I-"

Before she could continue, she heard a scoff underneath someone's breath. Her head snapped to Leo, who she saw mutter something under his breath to Jaune. The blonde next to him had a smile on his face, and was trying to suppress a laugh.

"Delegate Valdez! Do you have anything you wish to say?!" Ruby said as she pointed the gavel toward the would be offender.

Leo shot up aggressively, meeting Ruby's silver eyes with his dark chocolate brown ones, "As a matter of fact I do! The delegate of Team LP refuses to acknowledge the incorrect and rather boisterous claims made by Ruby Rose. May the summit forgive my language but I find that to be…"

"Don't you say it!" Ruby cut in, trying to stop him.

"... a load of barnacles."

"Ohhhh you said it!" Ruby said angrily "This act is a declaration of war! I will not see the name of Team RWBY dragged through the mud of some… half manned team!"

Leo let out a dramatic gasp, "You will grow to resent those words delegate!"

Jaune then rose from his seat, and began to walk around the dorm room slowly, "Lady and Gentleman, let us not have the first recorded meeting end in a declaration of war, but rather an olive branch which will unite our three teams for the rest of our time at Beacon!"

Ruby and Leo eyed one another before turning back to face Jaune.

"I have speedily created a Declaration of Unity" Jaune said as he held up a piece of paper. It was nothing special. If anything it was as far from special as a piece of paper could get. It was a piece of lined paper, more than likely ripped from Jaune's notebook at some point. It was written in blue crayon, had a short paragraph upon it, but the thing that stood out the most was the crude stick figure drawing of what Ruby could only guess was meant to be her, Leo, and Jaune standing in a triangle with their hands in the middle.

"This document states that, our respective teams shall become the closest of friends during our time at Beacon. Come Grimm or high water, we will always stick together. No matter the cause."

"Aye, the honorable delegate Leo Valdez approves the motion."

"Seconded" Ruby agreed, as her and Leo's feud was long forgot.

"Then alas, come sign your names to this reveled piece of parchment! And may our alliance be forged in bonds of fellowship!"

Jaune passed the paper to Leo, and the latino boy signed his name in print. Jaune collected the paper once again and handed it to Ruby, who signed her name speedily in a sloppy cursive print. He then brought the paper back to his desk, and signed it himself. He then pulled out a binder from his backpack and slipped it into the front of sleeve, with the paper now safely behind a plastic sleeve. He then placed the binder down and took a seat in his chair, before folding his hands together on the makeshift desk in front of him.

Leo cracked a smile and attempted not to laugh, but he couldn't help it as he began to giggle. Ruby tried her best to resist the giggle fit that had infected Leo but she began to laugh as well. Meanwhile, Jaune didn't even try to fight it. He openly laughed, and Ruby and Leo joined him. Immediately she could tell it was one of those laughters that was the best kind. One that you felt deep in your belly. She then began to laugh even harder as the tone of Leo's laugh changed as it became a short choppy 'he-he' instead of the loud boisterous laugh he had been using earlier.

The laughing began to slow down until it was a few muffled laughters, and it ended with Leo wiping away a tear on his face that had welled in his right eye.

"Holy hell that was great" Leo said as he laughed a bit "I haven't laughed that hard in a looooong time."

Jaune nodded his head and Ruby agreed besides him. After taking a moment to recollect themselves, the blonde knight spoke up.

"If we're planning on having our teams become best friends, shouldn't we have a team bonding session? Or maybe something along those lines?"

Leo and Ruby shared a look.

"It's not a half bad plan" Leo said aloud "What do you think Rubes?"

Ruby looked slightly apprehensive about it, but then gave in, "Sure. I mean... I just don't know what we're going to do with ten people. Make cookies and eat them until we all throw up?"

Jaune let out a snort and Leo spoke up.

"What about paintballing?" Leo suggested.

Ruby quickly shook her head no, "Are you crazy? Could you imagine the catastrophic damage that would happen if we did that? Imagine if Yang got paint in her hair!"

Jaune and Leo quietly shuddered at the thought. To wound Yang's hair was to court death itself. No one on the planet would be crazy enough to bring paint within five feet of her, let alone shoot a dangerous, paint filled projectile at her.

"Okay then paintball is officially out" Jaune said as he crossed it off the imaginary list "We could go to the mall?"

Ruby seemed to like the idea, but Leo clearly did not. His face got all scrunched up and he shook his head side to side. "Last time I was in a mall it was terrible. Department stores are the killers of capitalism and the teenage wallet everywhere. Let's go somewhere else."

Jaune and Ruby looked toward one another and the blonde leader quietly began to mouth 'what the fu-' before the hooded girl turned back to Leo to not see Jaune say the inappropriate word.

"Okaaay" Ruby said as she dragged it out "Malls are out then. What about a sleepover? Guys sleep here in Team LP's room and the girls in Team RWBY's room? That could work right?"

Leo looked okay with and nodded his head up and down, but Jaune looked like he had a plan brewing inside his head.

"Okay I like the idea" Jaune said as he pressed his finger tips together, the gears in his head beginning to turn "But what about if one night, say Friday is the quote on quote 'separate sleep over' and then Saturday is a group sleepover ? That way we mix and mingle with everyone?"

"I think what Jaune is trying to say is, is that he wants their to be a co-ed sleepover so that he can impress a certain Ice Queen." Leo added as he wiggled his eyebrows.

Jaune's face went red and Ruby giggled at the blonde. "First of all, she prefers Snow Angel to Ice Queen."

"Does she though?" Ruby asked sarcastically.

Jaune glared at her quickly before continuing, "And secondly, team building is a group thing. For example, has Percy ever really talked to Ren or Blake to Nora? It would be a good way for all of us to get to know one another; a solid first step."

Ruby and Leo glanced toward one another and both were equally impressed. Jaune's reasoning was sound, and if they didn't break the ice, both with their teammates and with Weiss, they wouldn't get anywhere.

"It's a solid move" Leo said as he looked back to Jaune "Now I finally understand why Ozpin made you a team leader. You finally put that big brain of yours to use."

Jaune smiled a bit and rolled his eyes before turning to the final team leader, "Does that work for you Ruby?"

"Yeah it works for me!" she said cheerfully "Let's ask our teams tonight and see what they say?"

"Sounds like a plan" Jaune said confirming for the group "Meeting adjourned for the night then? I need to get back and finish Port's Grimm project or Pyrrha will set Nora loose on me and I may not last the night if that happens."

Ruby hit the gavel on her table twice before dropping it on the table. "Shoo! Be gone Jaune! We want you to be around for the long haul!"

Jaune laughed a bit and stood up from the desk he was sitting at and grabbed his backpack with the special binder. He made his way toward the door before he turned around. "Goodnight guys, I'll talk to you tomorrow! Team leaders for life!"

"Team leaders for life!" Leo and Ruby yelled back with raised fists. With that, Jaune closed the door to Team LP's room, leaving Ruby and Leo to themselves.

Leo turned to Ruby, "Well that was a surprisingly productive meeting. I thought it was going to end with us throwing crayons at one another or maybe even giving Jaune a wedgie."

"Stop! Don't be mean!" Ruby said playfully as she laughed at Leo "You talk a lot for someone who is barely 5'5."

Leo gasped, "You wound me Ruby. I'll have you know I'm easily 5'6", pushing 5'6 and a half!"

"Really?" Ruby said teasingly "Could've fooled me."

Leo threw up his hands, "What the heck, I'm supposed to be to witty and sarcastic one. Oh how the tables have turned."

Ruby laughed again and Leo joined in, the boy laughing at his own joke. As he was laughing Ruby took a second glance at Leo. She still didn't know him that well yet, but Ruby could not deny that he was one of her best friends so far at Beacon, but then again that wasn't saying much. It had only been a week, but things with her teammates and friends had been moving rather… slowly.

Weiss Schnee, her partner and heiress to the world famous Schnee Dust Company, was for lack of a better word... cold to her. The girl from Atlas was trying her best to be nicer to Ruby, their small heart to heart over coffee assured her of that. However, Weiss never seemed to know how to have fun. Ruby smiled wickedly to herself. It was only a matter of time until her 'Best Day Ever' binder would be complete, and Weiss would soon feel the wrath of fun.

Her other teammate, Blake, was still being lame. The ninja like girl never seemed to be able to get out of 'ninja mode'. Quietly moving from place to place, rarely ever speaking unless it was to correct someone, answering a question, or training with the rest of Team RWBY. She was silent, and while Ruby was really worried at first, Yang helped calm her down. Blake was just quiet, not shy like herself.

Meanwhile, Ruby hadn't gotten to know Team JNPR all that well yet besides Jaune. Pyrrha seemed nice enough, but the hardest thing was how Ruby had to get over her excitedness to met her. Afterall, she was one of the best fighters in the world, and anybody with that kind of skill had to be admired. Ren and Nora seemed to be a handful as well, with Ren being the 'hand' and Nora being the 'full'. Nora was a bundle of energy, one which Ruby loved to challenge, regardless of whatever the task was. Ren probably didn't appreciate her eagerness to challenge Nora though.

All in all though, Ruby hoped that they would all become great friends. It would be hard enough to become a huntsmen, but it would be even harder to do it alone. Afterall, there was a reason teams were made at the Huntsmen academies across Remnant. It was always easier to have a team watching your back, than to fight by yourself. And if there were nine other people watching her back? Ruby smiled to herself, she could live with that.

* * *

 ** _-_ _Jason Grace_ _-_**

With a groan, Jason finally woke from his restless sleep. He had gotten in late the night before, stumbling past the magic border and Pelus, before reaching Cabin One. He felt himself laying on a soft comfortable mattress and his gaze was focused on the empty bed above him.

He turned his head to right and saw a nightstand. On it rested a small alarm clock, his glasses, and an unframed picture. Jason focused on the picture for a second before throwing the blankets off of him and swung his legs out of bed. The son of Jupiter stretched his limbs slightly, feeling his joints crack and pop in return.

He slowly stood up and began to get dressed. He dressed himself in a pair of tan shorts and an orange camp t-shirt, followed shortly by his glasses. He slid his feet, one at a time, into a pair of flip flops. His new sword, Ivlivs, was sheathed and waiting for him in the weapons rack by the door. He grabbed it, and slung it over his shoulder so that it was snug against his back. Jason turned toward the door, and took a deep breath before he opened it and the rays of sunshine hit his face.

He squinted at first, his eyes trying to adjust to the brightness, but once they did, he was met with a familiar sight that he once called home. He saw a few campers milling about, some leaving their respective cabins to head for a late brunch while some of the younger kids were running around and playing Medusa tag.

Jason didn't stare long and he began to make his way toward the dining pavilion. He needed food. It had been so long since he had had a real meal, and a person could only eat so many energy bars before they all started to taste like minotaur dung. He shuddered at the thought and the pavilion started to come into view and with it, he saw a mop black hair surrounded by golden blonde on all sides. Jason grinned at the site and began to pick up the pace.

Before he knew it, he was behind Nico and the sons and daughters of Apollo. Those that could see Jason were trying their best to hide their snickers.

"What are you all laughing - ack!" Nico began but he was cut off as Jason wrapped his arms around the son of Hades and hugged him, lifting the boy into the air.

"Put me down or so help me" Nico said through grit teeth "All the gods on Olympus won't be able to help you."

Jason let out a laugh, "It's not like they've ever been much help anyways though."

He placed Nico back down on the bench and the boy turned around to face him, a weird half scowl - half smile graced his face, and Jason was only slightly afraid. Nico stood up, along with a golden hair boy next to him and Nico gave Jason a proper hug even though it only lasted for a few seconds. Jason then focused on the boy next to him.

"Hey Will it's good to see you." Jason said with a friendly smile.

"It's good to see you too Jason. It's been a while."

"It has" Jason admitted, as he rubbed the back of his head "I've been busy. Being a Pontifex Maximus isn't exactly easy."

"But you still could've Iris messaged us" Nico pointed out "You're many things, but I know you're not broke."

Jason shot Nico a look, "Don't start with me young man. I'll put your sword on the top shelf."

Nico's eye twitched, "It wasn't funny the first time you tried it, and it'll be even less funny if you tried it again. And I'm older than you!"

"Anyway" Will cut in, stopping his boyfriend from going on a rant "What brings you to camp Jason? We thought school started soon for you again?"

"It does. But I actually came to talk to you two. Do you think we could go somewhere private?"

"Of course." Nico agreed, his playful attitude quickly evaporating and replaced with his trademark seriousness "We can go to the Big House. Not one will be using the War Room."

"And if someone is, Nico will just scare them away" Will teased.

He rolled his eyes and tried to punch, "It was literally one time. Let it die."

"You and your death" Will said "I thought we had gotten over that fetish Nico~"

"It is not a-!" Nico began to yell, but he composed himself, "It is not a fetish. Just something I am required to tolerate because of my father."

Jason fought to suppress a laugh, "War room?"

"War room" Nico agreed quickly.

The three made the short walk toward the Big House. They passed Mr. D and Chiron who were locked in a game of Pinochle. They attempted to say hello but neither attempted to engage in discourse. Mr. D was angrily drinking from a Diet Coke can as he eyed his cards. Meanwhile, Chiron nodded politely, acknowledging their presence, but unwilling to take his eyes off his opponent.

They made their way into the War Room, where Will and Nico made their way toward two chairs by the ping-pong table and Jason pulled up a third before sitting down, the group arranged in a small triangle.

"So what did you want to talk to us about?" Will asked.

Jason let out a breath. He had practiced this in his head the way over from Louisiana, but now that he was here he just couldn't tell them about Thalia. It was still too raw, too fresh. He didn't… he didn't know how to deal with it yet.

"I…" Jason started. However, when he didn't continue Nico raised an eyebrow.

"I wanted to talk about Leo" Jason said. Maybe if he was lucky Nico would accept that was what he wanted to talk about, but he also knew Nico wasn't a fool and that he had been deflecting.

At the mention of the missing boy, Will look as if he deflated and Nico didn't look much better.

"I already told you Jason" Nico began "Father said that both Percy and Leo are resting peacefully in Elysium."

"But then why can't-" Jason began but was cut off by Nico.

"I already told you Jason, I can't summon them. I don't know why, but I can't. Summoning the souls of the dead is like a phone call. You can call and call and call, but it doesn't mean the other end is going to answer."

"But why wouldn't they answer though!?" Jason argued "It doesn't make sense. They're our friends. Wouldn't they want to say goodbye?"

"It's still not that simple Jason" Nico said, his voice sympathetic "If you were Percy, how would you go about saying goodbye to your friends and family? How do you think he would say goodbye to Annabeth?"

Jason shifted awkwardly in his fold up chair.

"It's… hard. It took some time before Bianca answered my summons, and it wasn't an easy conversation we had."

He hated to admit it, but Nico was right. How did someone go about saying their _final_ goodbyes until the people you were saying goodbye to died themselves? It made him sick to his stomach to think about and it didn't help that part of that sick feeling was also partially his fault.

"Jason…" Will said getting his attention "It's okay to miss your friends… your best friends for that. Just give it some time and I'm sure they'll answer eventually."

"It's just... hard, ya know?" Jason said to the couple "Things are just so different now."

Will gave Jason a meaningful look, while Nico stood up. "I'll be right back."

The boy quickly shuffled out of the room and Jason turned to look back at the other blonde.

"Will... can I ask you to do me a favor?"

"Normally I'd say yes" the son of Apollo admitted "But I'm thinking you're going to ask me something big."

Jason winced, "It's not huge."

Will shot him a look.

"Okay it's kinda huge."

"Just say it Jason. It seems like something you don't want Nico to hear."

"Not necessarily" Jason waved off "But that's beside the point."

He took a breath, "Can you please try and convince Nico to look for Percy and Leo in the Underworld? I just… want to make sure they made it there."

Will opened his mouth, but Jason interrupted "You don't have to say yes or no now, but please at least consider it. It would put my mind at ease."

It took a second for a response from Will, but he nodded his head, agreeing to Jason's request.

"I'll do it, but you owe me one." Will said "I don't like it when Nico goes to the Underworld alone."

"There are ways around that ya know? You could ask Hazel to go with him. Heck even you could go. Make a date out of it."

"That's-" Will paused "That's actually not a bad idea. Even though I don't think the Fields of Asphodel would make for lovely picnic."

"I'm sure you'd manage though" Jason said through a weak smile.

It was then when Nico entered into the room. His hand balled into a fist, carrying something inside of it. What it was, Jason had no idea, but he was sure he'd find out soon enough.

Nico stood in front of Jason and the older boy looked at him in return.

"A few weeks ago, some of the Cabin Nine kids went to investigate Bunker 9. They had finally gotten back from helping to repair the infrastructure for New Rome. While they were there, Harley found this."

Nico opened his palm and laying in it was a necklace. It was a beautiful gold, vastly different from the Celestial Bronze that Camp Half Blood used for its weapons. The only charm on it was a single lightning bolt, and Jason could immediately tell that it was made for him.

He held out his hand and Nico dropped it into his. The son of Jupiter rubbed his thumb over the bolt, feeling how smooth it was on his finger.

"The Hephaestus kids ran some tests on it. Turns out its charmed to turn into a full set of body armor, but it needs a bolt of lightning to activate it. There's only two people I could imagine it could be for, and I don't think Leo was trying to make a move on your sister."

Jason cringed at the mention of Thalia, but the scowl on his face disappeared as quickly as it appeared.

"Leo you idiot…" Jason whispered under his breath.

If Leo had truly passed on, then Jason would cherish it. One last gift from a friend who wanted to keep his friend safe. If only Jason had knew what happened to him.

* * *

 ** _-_ _Perseus Jackson_ _-_**

A month into his time at Beacon and Percy absolutely loved it. The classes were interesting, even if he struggled to pay attention at times. The people who had come to call his friends were awesome. With the exception of being pulled into what Leo had dubbed the 'Ozlluminati' and hiding his secret that he was the son of a god, it was a normal as he had felt in a long time.

But the thing that Percy looked forward to the most every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday was Professor Goodwitch's Combat Class. Unlike at Camp Half Blood, where Percy had been made the informal swordsmanship teacher appointed by Chiron, he had a chance to be critiqued by Professor Goodwitch and actually _learn_ something new. He had been stuck teaching and trying to mentor inexperienced seven to twelve year olds since he was fourteen, and that had come close to being more frustrating than the gods and their ridiculous requests. He could only handle accidentally getting hit in the nuts with an unsharpened sword so many times.

He shuddered at the memory, but it was quickly forgotten as Percy attentively listened to the advice Glynda was giving to Team RWBY and JNPR after their team fight. JNPR had won the battle, but the fight had been more akin to four simultaneous one v one's. With Ruby and Yang outlasting Jaune and Nora respectively, while Blake and Weiss were dismantled by Ren and Pyrrha.

As soon as Goodwitch had said go, Percy watched their battle with intense focus. Early on, RWBY had attempted an interesting combination of team attacks clearly meant to disorient and disrupt JNPR before they could even muster any form of plan. However, it was surprisingly Jaune who had but an end to it before it could even get off the ground. While RWBY had coated the arena in a steamy haze (courtesy of Yang and Weiss) masking their movements, Jaune quickly grouped them into a defensive position and had the brilliant idea to use Nora to flush them out with her grenade launcher.

The plan worked to perfection. The pink grenades quickly drove away the haze and had left RWBY scrambling to avoid the explosions in an almost comical way. Not to be outmaneuvered by her fellow team leader, Ruby quickly ordered to take JNPR one on one.

Thus began the one on one fights. Yang bullrushed Nora, Ruby engaged Jaune, Blake took on her fellow ninja in Ren, and that left Weiss to take on Pyrrha.

Yang and Nora's fight had students flinching as the powerhouses went after one another. It was only thanks to the protective barrier around the stands that stopped the pair from being launched into the stands more than a few times. The two continued to slug it out, but as the fight dragged on, it became clear that Nora couldn't hang with her fellow powerhouse.

It was clear to see that Nora was a huntress who's weapon and style was better suited to fighting Grimm. Her hammer meant to swiftly eliminate Grimm in one or two blows before her boundless energy brought her to her next victim. But Yang on the other hand was a perfect counter to Nora. Her weapon and fighting style allowed her to get in close, forcing Nora to go on the defensive while getting all the more frustrated. Nora was used to bashing homeruns… not so much the swing and the miss.

As soon as Nora dropped her caution for an all out attack, he could tell Yang had her in the palm of her hand. Using her buckshot from Ember Celica to dodge the orange haired girl, Nora had continued to chase her target. As soon as Nora had run out of energy and became winded, the boxer had ended the fight, finishing Nora with a move she had tried to teach Percy during a few of the spars they had against one another.

Meanwhile, Ruby and Jaune's fight had been rather… anticlimactic. What Jaune lacked in fighting ability, he made up for in leadership and his ability to strategize. But without a team to help Jaune, the fight quickly began to turn in Ruby's favor. Using her semblance, Ruby sped by Jaune, using Crescent Rose to score a hit before coming at him from a different direction. When he was lucky, Jaune could block the blow with his shield. More often than not though, he tried to hit Ruby with Crocea Mors, only to end up tanking a direct blow from his friend.

To everyone watching, it was clear that Jaune had pretty much no idea what he was doing. The boy was making a fool out of himself as he continued to swing and miss, rather badly, at the red blur. However, where people saw Jaune as a weakling, Percy saw some potential. The teen was unmistakably rough around the edges, but it by no means meant he was awful. He was decent with his shield when he decided to use it, and according to Pyrrha, Jaune had the largest aura she had ever seen. Sometimes the best defense was good defense.

Yang and himself had teased Pyrrha mercilessly when she had said that to them and the Invincible Girl had turned as red as the hair as soon as she realized what they had been implying. But in seriousness, Jaune did have an impressive aura, and that made Percy jealous. He had hit a block when it came to utilizing his aura during combat and that was beyond frustrating. If Jaune, the worst fighter in Beacon, had control over his aura and could regularly control it whenever he took a beating, they why the hell couldn't he flare his own when Yang punched him in the face when they spared?

He had ignored his growing annoyance and instead watched his friends continue to fight. The fight between Ruby and Jaune lasted longer than he had expected. Ruby had been training to fight her whole life, but no amount of skill or clever tricks could drain a person's aura as large as Jaune's. The trick to fighting Jaune was to either overpower him, out duel him, or out last him. Powerhouses like Nora, Cardin, or Yang tended to take option A. Skilled swordsmen like Dove, Weiss, Blake, and Russel would take option B. However, people sympathetic to Jaune and his desire to improve would take option C.

Ever since their class field trip to Forever Fall, Jaune had gotten a handle on the bullying Cardin and the rest of RDL had been subjecting him to. He hadn't told many people, only Pyrrha and himself, that he had obtained fake transcripts and lied his way in to Beacon.

With Jaune's revelation, things began to make sense. Beacon was the best of the best. And Jaune was well... not the best of the best, not yet at least. But with training from Pyrrha and himself, he'd get better. Slowly, but eventually.

It was strange working with Pyrrha to teach Jaune at first. They had tried to teach him together, but the pair quickly realized they had been doing more harm than good. After a pretty terrible first evening of late night training, the two spartan like warriors had sat down together, talked, and came to the conclusion that it would be best if Pyrrha trained Jaune every Monday and Wednesday, while Percy would train him Tuesday's and Thursday's, a day off on Friday, and then conditioning with both on Saturday and Sunday. Pyrrha would teach him how to fight, while Percy would teach him how to fight dirty, and together they would get stronger. It was a first step, a challenging step, but the beginning of something Percy and Pyrrha both knew would be great.

The fight with Ruby now was a prime example of Jaune's improvement. Normally, Ruby would have disarmed Jaune with Crescent Rose within the first few minutes of the melee. Instead, Jaune had managed to prove their combined training held up. Ruby was a whirlwind of rose petals around her opponent, slashing away at his armor and shield. He watched Jaune's aura trickle slowly downward, but Jaune was never knocked from his feet or forced to yield. At the current pace, it was only a matter of time until Ruby beat Jaune, but all that mattered was that he was putting up a fight. He knew he and Pyrrha would have to work on his offense in the coming weeks.

Meanwhile, else where on the battlefield, Blake and Ren had been evenly matched, with the two engaging in a quick, but deadly fight that looked more like a dance. Blake would send a slash at Ren with Gambol Shroud only to be quickly deflected by one of Ren's Storm Flowers and met with a counter attack of his own.

Blake moved quickly, not as fast as Ruby, but still relatively fast. She relied on her semblance to try and misdirect Ren, but the pink eyed boy rarely seemed to fall for the trick, catching Blake's slashes and stabs just before they could connect. Their aura's dwindled down together, each connecting with a few glancing blows. That is, until Ren made a brilliant move.

The unusually calm boy must have found a tell which allowed him to determine Blake's shadow clones from her real self and he took advantage of it. The move was certainly a gamble and if he failed, he probably would've been at a painful disadvantage. Ren pretended to go after Blake's shadow clone, turning his back to the girl. Blake with her usual neutral faced glare, went for a sideways slash with her weapon, only for Ren to suddenly drop to his feet and perform a sweeping leg kick.

Blake, unable to stop herself due to her momentum, was knocked from her feet and she landed hard on her back. Before she could even make an attempt to recover, Ren was perched above her with his Storm Flowers, loaded and aimed directly at her head. He told her to yield and Blake let out a sigh before yielding, knowing she had no other choice.

The fight between Weiss and Pyrrha had gone about just as well as anyone could have expected: Weiss got her butt absolutely handed to her. Her dust rapier was ill suited for combat against Pyrrha's shield, forcing Weiss to try and somehow come up with an attack that would catch her opponent from the side.

Using her glyphs, Weiss dashed around Pyrrha in a circle, forcing the champion to turn her sword into her rifle and take shots at the heiress. As soon as Weiss heard the click of an empty magazine and Pyrrha moved to reload, Weiss made her move. With a hard stop, the heiress stopped speeding around Pyrrha and twirled Myrtenaster before pushing the point into the ground with both hands.

A light blue glyph appeared under Pyrrha's feet, and the girl tired to move but found herself unable to. Her feet had been frozen into place, about halfway up to her calf. It soon became a race against time. The champion bashing her shield into the ice while Weiss used a glyph to move her swiftly behind Pyrrha. Almost faster than Percy could register, Weiss surged forward, the tip of her rapier aimed directly at her back.

However, that was when things got freaky. Pyrrha broke the ice on her legs, with maybe a second to spare before Weiss arrived. Maybe Weiss's arm had gotten tired or Pyrrha had somehow deflected it downward Percy wasn't sure, but the Invincible Girl had pinned the blade of Mythenaster in the gap between her high heel. Weiss's eyes were filled with disbelief at how swiftly Pyrrha had been able to move her leg to stop her weapon.

With Weiss unable to let go of Myrtenaster without becoming disarmed, Pyrrha swiftly ended the fight, bashing Weiss in the forehead and sending the girl tumbling backward until she connected with the wall of the arena. Her aura well into the red.

However, while Pyrrha had been engaged with Weiss, Ruby and Yang swiftly dismantled Ren. Maybe it was because neither wanted to fight Pyrrha or maybe they thought they would have a better chance together, Ruby acted as a distraction, while Yang came in and hammered Ren with one devastating blow knocking him down and into the red.

And just like that, the fight turned into a two v one. Ruby and Yang didn't even need to speak to one another as the two dashed forward and made a run at knocking off the Invincible Girl. Ruby made it there first, swinging Crescent Rose with a flurry of rose petals behind her. Pyrrha deflected using Miló in it's sword form, and swiftly raised Akoúo̱ as Yang moved in just as quickly, trying to decapitate the girl with a furious right hook.

Pyrrha was trapped, sandwiched between the two girls. Yang was on her right, blocked by her shield, and Ruby on her left, barely holding back the humongous scythe.

Yang seeing the draw they were now in, cocked her fist back and prepared to launch an uppercut into Pyrrha's stomach, but the girl quickly mobilized. Pyrrha crouched low and flipped herself backwards with an impressive display of gymnastic ability that Percy was one hundred percent sure he didn't have himself.

Ruby, who had putting pressure on Miló, fell forward as soon Pyrrha vacated the area. Yang, who's fist that had already been in motion, collided with her sister's stomach. The buckshot, launched Ruby backwards and sent her tumbling across the ground, and Yang could only stare wide-eyed as her sister groaned and tried to get back up. She looked to the board displayed above them, only to see her sister's aura knocked into the red because of her.

Yang's eyes quickly turned from their normal lilac to a fierce shade of red. She snapped her head back looking for Pyrrha, but the Invincible Girl was already upon in a fury of sword and shield strikes. Yang was battered and pushed back onto her heels. Pyrrha, with the momentum now on her side, mecha-shifted Miló into its spear form and wacked Yang's feet, forcing the blonde brawler to trip and fall onto her back. In an instant Pyrrha was above her, Miló pointed at her neck, forcing the blonde to yield.

Now Percy waited in the stands with Leo beside him, smiling as his friends made their way over.

"Ugh we were _this_ close to beating you guys!" Ruby groaned out loud as she held a hand to her stomach.

"Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades~!" Nora teased "There was no way you could've beaten our secret weapon!"

"Pyrrha is hardly a secret" Weiss bit back. She turned to her teammates "And you all! What happened to the plan?! And when did we decide I had to fight Pyrrha by myself!"

"I think it was this morning when we decided" Yang motioned to herself, Ruby, and Blake "That we would leave you to fight Pyrrha since you were taking too long in the shower."

Weiss threw her arms up, "Unbelievable!"

Percy chuckled at Weiss, and he turned his attention back towards Professor Goodwitch as they began to sit down. Yang plopped down next to Percy.

"So how do you think I did?" Yang said with a smile on her face.

"Well, I'd have to say the knockout punch on Ren was pretty impressive, and that was a pretty clever strategy you used to tire out Nora" Percy said earning a toothy grin from the blonde.

"But" Percy smirked "Friendly fire is usually something that should be avoided."

Yang huffed and punched his arm, wincing slightly as she used the hand that had punched Pyrrha's shield.

Percy snickered but turned his attention back to the Professor who now stood in the arena.

"An impressive display Ms. Nikos" Professor Goodwitch said as she nodded toward her "However, it is important to remember that fights with multiple combatants are perfect for surprise attacks."

Ruby attempted to raise her hand and speak but Professor Goodwitch continued instead "While Team RWBY's strategy of deploying a form of smokescreen was admirable, it is not the type of surprise attack I was referring to."

"If Ms. Rose or Ms. Xiao Long had maybe even fired a few rounds toward Ms. Nikos during her combat with Ms. Schnee, it could have had the potential to give their teammate the upper hand. It is always easier to fight against an opponent who is distracted than one who has all their attention focused on you."

She then turned in the general direction of Team RWBY and JNPR "Other than that slight nitpick, well done. You all fought admirably."

The two teams swelled with pride, with the members looking between each other with smiles on their faces.

However, the praise quickly disappeared and the professor was on to the next aspect of her lesson.

"While it is important to work together as a cohesive unit on the battlefield, there is always a possibility you can become separated from your teammates or find yourself in a situation where it is you against a multitude of threats you must fight on your own. May Team CRDL and Mr. Jackson please make your way to the arena."

Percy heard a few snickers from where Team CRDL were sitting and he watched as Cardin and the rest of his team stood up. Cardin flashed Percy an angry look, but he did not say anything as they made their way down.

"Ugh, I am not in the mood for this today" Percy groaned as he stood up.

"Don't feel bad Percy" Weiss said as she inspected her nails "We won't hold it against you if you lose."

Percy looked at Weiss his face clearly displease.

"Weiss!" her partner cried out "that was mean!"

"What? I'm just stating facts." Weiss said as she defended herself "The odds aren't in Percy's favor."

"Yeah but that was clearly unnecessary" Yang said coming to Percy's defense "He's our friend, or did you forget that?"

The Schnee heiress shot Yang an angry look and she returned it all the same.

Percy placed his hand softly on Yang's shoulder calming her down before turning to Weiss, "After I win, I expect an apology."

"Hmph" Weiss said as she turned her attention back to her nails.

Percy raised an eyebrow towards Yang and the blonde just shrugged her shoulders. Weiss was acting ruder than usual, and he was sure he hadn't done anything to earn her ire.

The son of Poseidon took his leave and made his way down into the arena. Standing across the way was Team CRDL. Dove, Russel, and Sky were standing with their weapons ready while Cardin stood leisurely behind them with his mace resting on his shoulder.

He pulled Bastion off his back, tightening the leather straps on his wrist until it was snug. He then pulled Onyx out of his pocket and flicked the cap off, the blade growing to its full size. Behind him he heard Ruby squeal in excitement, but he ignored it. He readied himself for the fight ahead, getting into a mobile stance.

He heard Nora cheer for him, "Break their legs Percy!"

"Yeah knock 'em dead!" Yang called out after.

"Are you ready to begin students?" Professor Goodwitch asked.

"I'm ready professor."

Across the way, Team CRDL nodded their heads.

"Begin!"

Nobody moved at first, but Percy was ready for his opponents. He knew that if he charged in sword swinging like a mad-man, he would be overwhelmed easily.

However, Cardin was unwilling to exercise patience

"Get him!"

Dove, Russel, and Sky charged at Percy.

Russel was the first to reach him, as he only carried two knives, making him much faster than his teammates. As the mohawk haired boy was about to reach him, Percy leaned forward close to the ground with his shield, and braced himself.

Russel crashed into an unmoving Percy and using his momentum, Percy lifted upward and flipped Russel over his shoulder. Russel hit the ground with a thud and the air was knocked from his lungs.

Dove came charging in next. He went for a one armed sword swipe, but Percy deflected it easily with his shield. Before he could recover, Percy slashed Onyx across the boy's chest sending him staggering backwards. The demigod sprung swiftly forward and kicked the boy in the chest, sending him sprawling onto his back across the floor.

Sky, who had been waiting for an opening, finally charged forward. He went in for an overheard swipe with his halberd, but Percy caught it above him with Onyx. Percy then went for a shield bash to hit his opponents unprotected side, but Sky swiftly disengaged from Percy and rolled away.

The two began to circle one another. Percy's eyes were locked onto Sky's. However he knew something was amiss when Sky's head twitched slightly. The son of Poseidon heard footsteps behind him and he quickly rolled to the side, only to see Russel stumble forward as a result of missing his target.

Instead of taking the opportunity to capitalize on Russel's missed strike, Percy went back on the defensive. Even if the members of Team CRDL had sloppy form, he refused to underestimate them. The three boys who had rushed him had probably done that just now and in turn they had looked like fools. They were hunters-in-training, the same as Ruby and Weiss, and they were dangerous. He wouldn't take them lightly.

It didn't take long for the boys to engage Percy again. This time with more caution and jumped toward Percy, lunging the spear part of his halberd at the demigod. He deflected the halberd to the side with Onyx. Russel came charging forward a second later, not even giving Percy a second to breathe.

Russel held the knife in his right hand knife in a reverse grip and went for a swipe at Percy's face. Percy began to rapidly move backwards, staying just out of reach of the swipes as Russel continued to pursue.

Russel slashed with his left hand dagger, missing. He followed by attempting a stab with his right, only to be parried by Onyx. The mohawk teenager lunged forward with both daggers above him in an overhead strike, but Percy got low and raised his shield above his head, deflecting the blow and pushing the boy backward.

Russel stumbled back but quickly recovered. Sky soon joined him by his side and the pair were breathing hard. Both winded and frustrated by not being able to hit their opponent.

Percy saw his chance. He stabbed Onyx into the ground and loosened the straps on his shield. He swiftly removed it from his arm and winded his arm back and launched it forward, Bastion hurtling toward the pair like a discuss.

Russel's eyes got wide as he saw the saucer fly towards him. The boy quickly rolled out of the way but the shield kept going and slammed into Sky's head, knocking the boy down.

Percy quickly pulled his sword out of the ground and dashed forward, pushing the offensive against Russell. He raised the sword over his head and launched a devastating overhead blow, which the boy barely deflected with his daggers. Percy repeated the same move, this time breaking through Russel's defenses and his sword coming down on his head. Luckily for Russel, his aura saved him from having his head split in two. Regardless, the force of strike on his skull launched him face first into the ground where he would not get up.

Percy began to walk toward Sky who was still recovering on the ground. The boy was on one knee, his hand against his face as he tried to regain his composure and senses. The demigod didn't give him the chance to recover as he bashed the pegasus pommel into the boy's head, knocking him out cold.

Percy then turned his attention Dove, the boy attempting to put on a brave face but slightly shuddering at his classmates unrelenting takedown of his teammates. Percy continued his advance and Dove, seeing as Percy wouldn't spare him any kindness, mustered a brave roar and charged at his opponent.

Dove attacked with his sword drawn over his head and Percy raised his own sword up with both hands to meet him. The two became locked in a clash but it was quickly broken when Percy pushed the boy back and spartan kicked him in the center of his stomach.

Percy's opponent instantly doubled over falling to his hands and knees before him. Percy then kicked the boy in side of his head right near his temple, and Dove's unconscious body hit the ground hard, defeated via unconsciousness.

Before Percy got a chance to look for Cardin, he felt the sudden rush of air behind him. Knowing he didn't have time to try and get out of the way, he tried to flare his aura, only to see a bit of sea green cover his finger tips before fizzling away.

"Damn it" Percy whispered.

He felt something slam into his rib cage and he was sent flying across the arena. He tumbled across the ground, kicking up some of the dirt that covered the arena floor until he slammed into a hard object, presumably the area wall.

Percy laid on the ground for a second or three, shaking off the hit and _really_ wishing he knew how to activate his stupid aura or why it wouldn't obey his commands. He couldn't worry about that now though, he had a fight to win.

Once he was ready, he rolled over and with a wince, he pushed himself up and off the ground.

Across the arena Cardin had a smirk on his face, "What's a matter Percy? Can't handle a one single hit?"

Percy snorted, "Hilarious Cardin. You should be a comedian. Maybe you could teach Yang some funny jokes because her's could use some work."

"HEY!"

Percy tried not to laugh then and there.

Cardin chuckled darkly, "Maybe I will Jackson. And maybe I'll teach her a few other things as well."

Percy's breath hitched at that. Yang was his friend, his closest friend at Beacon, with the exception of Leo, his first friend at Beacon. He wouldn't touch a single hair on her head, and he would _not_ talk about her that way. Not to anyone else and _especially_ not him.

Something stirred inside the pit of his stomach. He was angry… he was _really_ angry. And Cardin was a going to be the recipient of that anger in full.

With a snarl, Percy charged. He slid on his knees to avoid the horizontal blow Cardin had launched at him with his mace. The demigod popped up behind him and began to slash at the larger boy's back. His armor took the first one or two blows before his aura flared to cover the rest.

In response Cardin spun around and swung his mace toward Percy. The weapon came in like a wrecking ball and Percy could only block with Onyx. The mace smashed against the sword, the force of it ripped from the demigod's hand and sent it sailing away from him. The demigod, shocked that he been disarmed, turned to look back and saw Cardin preparing for a heavy two handed strike from above, similar to what he had done to Russel earlier.

Backed into a corner with no weapon, and the enemy prepared to hurt him. Percy did what he was taught at Camp. Hit 'em where it hurts.

He swung his leg up.

"AUGH!" Cardin screamed in a pitch significantly higher than what was normal. He dropped his mace behind him and fell to the ground as well. The boy whimpering as he tried to relieve the pain from the Winchester family jewels.

The crowd was silent and when Percy looked over towards it, he say that some had their jaws hanging open while a good number of them were trying not to laugh. Even Glynda was slightly aghast at his winning strategy.

Professor Goodwitch quickly collected herself as she saw Percy waiting for some type of feedback.

"Well that is certainly one way to defeat an opponent" Goodwitch commended in her usual coldness "However in the future, let's try to refrain from such unorthodox moves, shall we?"

She then turned to face the class in the stands, "Class I hope you all took note of Mr. Jackson's performance as well as Team CRDL's failures. An advantage in numbers does not always equate to victory."

Before she could continue, the bell signaling the start of their lunch period rang and his classmates began to shuffle as they collected their belongings and made their way up and toward the exit of the arena. Percy began to leave the arena as well until he was stopped by Professor Goodwitch.

"That was an excellent match Mr. Jackson."

"Thank you Professor."

Percy was surprised. In the month that he had been at Beacon, Professor Goodwitch seldomly complimented single students on their fights. Well... with maybe the exception to that rule being Pyrrha.

"However, I don't think either of us should pretend not to see what happened in your duel with Mr. Winchester."

He winced.

"While Cardin and I will be having words about his rather inappropriate words about his fellow classmate, you must learn to control and temper your anger.

"The ability to get under one's skin is a fight is dangerous, so please remember to try and keep a level head. It will do you no good if you get riled up and become reckless."

He nodded his head and thanked Goodwitch for her advice before leaving the arena to met with his friends. On the way over, he began to think to himself. Percy knew what the Professor had said to him was correct, but it still didn't explain why it had made him so angry. He'd had his fair share of taunting and teasing monsters, humans, and immortal beings in his demigod career to develop a thick enough skin. How Cardin had managed to weasel through seventeen years of mental toughness didn't make sense.

Maybe he had been spending too much time with Yang - her quick to anger personality wearing off on him a bit. But then again, maybe it was some type of Post Traumatic Stress. He only seemed to lose his temper when he was in the middle of a fight. He thought on that for a moment, but then quickly dismissed the idea. He had been calm and collected during initiation when he had been fighting for his life against the Deathstalker and Nevermore.

It was then he remembered what Weiss had said to him before his match. The girl was being cold… more so than she normally was. It was almost like Weiss had traded Ruby in for Percy and he was now the one to be automatically scolded for every little thing he did.

He racked his brain, trying to think what he could've done to set her off. There had been the time he pulled her to the side after her fight with the Boarbatusk and their argument later that day. He thought he had done a good job getting Weiss to see reason and not be mad at Ruby, and he had even hoped that it was enough to put him and the Heiress on friendly terms. Maybe he had been wrong though? Annabeth used to hate it when-

Percy's breath hitched at the thought of his girlfriend.

It always happened once or twice a day now, but it had been significantly worse when he had first arrived at Beacon. He would see, read, or be reminded of something that he connected to his love and he would freeze up. Percy missed her, that he couldn't deny. The way she laughed, her princess curls, and the way her forehead would scrunch up whenever she read something she didn't like or agree with.

Gods he missed her. He really did.

When Hera had wiped his memory, she had been the only thing he couldn't forget. He knew he would be able to find his way back to her someday, but now?

Now he wasn't so sure.

He wanted to get back to her, and he would take whatever chance he got to be with her again. It wasn't meant to be rude in any capacity to his new friends here, but he loved Annabeth. His loyalty to her outweighed the people he had only known for a month.

Was that wrong of him to think? Maybe. He didn't like to think that he liked some friends more than others. But him and Annabeth were friends. Lovers. Partners. She was a part of his life and he missed her.

"-cy" he partially heard someone calling his name. He looked up to see Yang standing in the doorway "Percy? You coming to lunch with us?

"Y-yeah, sorry just got lost in thought."

"All good. Come on let's go to lunch! I'm starving."

Percy nodded his head. He met up with Yang, the girl offering him a friendly smile, before the began to stroll toward the cafeteria.

"Hey question for you" Yang asked.

"What's up?"

"Do you like pickles by any chance?" she asked innocently.

"Um kinda?" Percy asked "Why?"

"Well it's kinda big _dill~_ "

Percy tried his absolute hardest to try and keep a straight face but the corners of his mouth started to give way into a smile, betraying him.

"HA yes! Finally! I knew someone appreciated my puns" Yang cheered "Get ready bucko cause you're gonna be my guinea pig for all of my puns now."

Percy let out a long groan, "Oum help me."

The most likely option was that he had just been annoyed and it showed it by being overly aggressive during his fight with Team CRDL. Everybody had bad days from time to time and people were allowed to get angry. He shrugged his thoughts away, instead electing to catch up with

Percy let out a laugh and Glynda gave a small smile at her observation.

"However, the reason I need to talk to you is that Ozpin would like to see you in his office next Monday. A colleague of ours is arriving in Vale that day and Ozpin believes you should meet him."

Percy gave her nood "Of course Professor."

The good witch then turned to walk out of the arena, "Have a good weekend Percy."

As soon as she was gone, Percy let out a deep breath and winced as he felt pain in his ribs. He knew that at least more than one of them was fractured if not broken. Ignoring the pain, Percy quickly made his way over to his shield and picked up off the floor. He slid it back on to his wrist and pressed the button, making it shrink into it's normal silver watch form.

Percy took a quick look around the battlefield and inwardly laughed at the sight of a humiliated Team CRDL spread around the arena.

 _Should I help them?_ Percy thought to himself. He shrugged his shoulders, _Nah, they'll wake up eventually and Cardin's nose will heal._

Percy then turned and made his way out of the arena to go see his friends who were waiting for him.

"You did so awesome Percy!" Ruby said bouncing up and down around him "When you flipped Russel with your shield he was like 'whaaat?' and then when you threw your shield and knocked them out! It was so cool!"

"It was an impressive match Percy" Blake complimented.

Percy just sheepishly rubbed the back of his head, "Thanks guys, but it was nothing. If anything I felt a little off today."

"What are you talking about Percy?!" Jaune exclaimed "That was amazing! I wish could do that."

"Yes Percy, it was an amazing fight" Pyrrha complimented with a wide smile.

Percy just smiled at his friends, "Thank you guys. It means a lot."

The red headed champion from Mistral returned his smile. However, the silence was interrupted when a loud ahem filled the air.

The group turned and looked toward Nora, who had one had stretched out toward Weiss and another on her hip,

"Pay up Ice Queen. I believe you owe me, Yang, and Ruby for Percy totally kicking butt. Unlike what you said."

Weiss just grumbled and took her purse out of her bag. She quickly gave each of the girls the ten Lien they were promised. Weiss then turned and stormed off, muttering under her breath.

"Weiss wait! Where are you going!" Ruby called out.

"Sorry guys! Gotta go! My partner is being moody again" The red reaper then took off in a flurry of red rose petals as she sped off to catch up with her partner.

"Well… she's been acting weird lately" Percy said aloud.

"Yeah she has" Yang agreed "I wonder why?"

"Beats me!" Nora said "Come on Ren, let's go see if the lunch ladies will make me pancakes!"

Ren then began to be dragged away by his partner leaving Jaune, Pyrrha, Yang, Blake, and Percy together.

"Well that's probably our que" Jaune said "You guys want to head over and eat lunch together?"

A chorus of yes's emerged from the friend group, but before they left Percy spoke,

"You guys go ahead, I need to change back into my uniform. I'll see you guys in a bit?"

"Sounds good!" Pyrrha said "Come on friends, let's go get a table."

Percy followed to the cafeteria.

* * *

 _ **-Yang Xiao Long-**_

Yang plopped down between Percy and Blake at their lunch table and she began to munch heartily on the sandwich that had been provided for her. Fighting, even if it was only a spar, burned a lot of calories. It wasn't uncommon that she'd demolish three or four sandwiches and all the calories would be burned off by the end of the day. Extensive training combined with the quick metabolism of a teenager could be a pain in the ass, but she'd be damned if that didn't make her look good.

Around her, her teammates and friends were in a similar state. Team JNPR ate like they hadn't seen food in decades. Pyrrha ate slow and properly, yet she stuck to a well balanced diet. Probably created for her by top dietitians that sponsored her back in Mistral. After all, she was a famous athlete. People looked up to her over the world, and if being a huntress didn't work out, then Yang was sure they was some sort of fine print that would bring Pyrrha back into the competitive fighting fold.

Meanwhile, Nora and Ren ate like fiends. She had expected the behavior from Nora, the girl consuming more pancakes per week than she had bones in her body. It shocked her that Ren ate as much as he did. The boy usually sat and sipped tea, but ate food in mass qualities at a leisurely pace. However, after getting to know the pair a bit. She had learned that Nora and Ren had lived as orphans, moving from place to place and making do with what they had on hand. It only made sense they ate so much. They had at least twelve years of quality meals to catch up on.

Jaune was the only member of Team JNPR who ate similar to a normal civilian. Which was strange as Jaune seemed to have been working twice as hard to try and catch up to everyone else. Eventually, Jaune's stomach would probably catch up with the rest of them. If he didn't end up quitting Beacon.

Team RWBY on the other hand, was incredibly different. Weiss was proper and lady like, and never seemed to eat more than a plate or two. Blake always seemed to ration her food, almost like she never knew when she was going to eat again. Meanwhile, the only outlier was Ruby. The girl's semblance made her burn calories almost twice as fast as everyone else. If Nora ate on average a thousand pancakes a week then Ruby could eat at least two thousand. It was almost unfair how much that girl could eat and still be as petite as she was.

Yang had moved on to her second sandwich when had leapt upon the table, ready to make some form of announcement.

"Members of RWBY, JNPR, LP, I have had an idea!" Ruby said enthusiastically.

"Oh great" Weiss said with an eye roll "This will be good."

Leo, who was sitting next to Weiss, flicked her, "Can it Ice Queen. He turned back to Ruby, "Actually it was the leaders of our three teams that had an idea."

"No it wasn't" Percy said from his spot "You're not the leader! That isn't a thing."

Yang had to suppress a snort from next to him.

"The _leaders_ of our teams" Ruby said again as she gave Percy a playful glare, "We decided this. As teammates, it is our sworn duty to risk life and limb for one another! But in order to do that, we need to build trust! So what I'm proposing is team bonding night!"

"Team bonding?" Ren asked.

"Er yes!" Ruby began "I mean... if you guys like the idea?"

Ruby shot Jaune and Leo a nervous look.

Yang recognized that look. That was Ruby's 'please help me! I'm socially awkward _'_ look.

Before Beacon, Ruby had always been the girl that had not had many real friends. Most of her little sister's friends were Yang's friends, and they only seemed to tolerate her. Yang would always put her sister before herself, but it really placed a burden on herself. She wanted to have a social life of her own, but how could she live with herself if she left her sister to fend for herself?

Yang had hoped Beacon would break Ruby out of her shell, and so far, the Academy had done exactly that. Within the first week, Ruby had found herself eight new friends that would be there for her. And for the first time in a long time, Yang didn't have to worry and keep her eye on Ruby every second of the day.

She couldn't even remember the last time Ruby had real friends before Beacon. Maybe it had been the two Stark twins, Arya and Brandon, who had stayed on Patch for an extended stay. Their father, a powerful huntsman and landowner in Atlas had gone on a mission with her Uncle Qrow and decided to let his twins stay with her father, Tai-Yang, instead of with their mother and other siblings. She didn't know the full story other than that the Stark patriarch was good friends with Tai during their younger days. They had stayed for a long time and Ruby had gained two friends over night.

Alas, all good things had to come to an end. The mission ended after three months and when their father returned to take them back to Atlas, Ruby was heartbroken, and the Stark twins felt the same. It was only through their parents clever word play had they managed to separate the golden trio.

Outside of Arya and Brandon, Ruby never though she needed more friends. The rest of the world passed her by while she stayed pen pals with her friends in the North.

However, Ruby wold occasionally fall into old habits, and now was one of those times.

Instead of Yang coming to the rescue, it was Jaune and Leo who supported her.

"Of course they love the idea!" Leo said supportively. His eyes then turned sharply to the rest of the table. "Right guys?"

"Mhm!"

"Of course!"

"Will there be pancakes?"

Jaune clapped his hands together, "Awesome! Then we're in agreement. This is gonna be an awesome weekend. Take it away Leo!"

"Huddle up team" Leo said as he leaned in "Tonight, we'll split up, the guys will sleep in LP's room while the gals will head to RWBY's. Then after we recovered from a night of video games and whatever it is ladies do..."

The ladies of the table raised their eyebrows.

"Then all of us will spend Saturday night together. One big team bonding session that will kick start our lives at Beacon... in a non-life threatening way of course. Capeesh?"

The group nodded their heads in agreement, smiles lighting up along the length of the table.

"Then it's settled! Get your homework done tonight so we can have a memory filled weekend! The leaders of your teams command it!"

"You are _so_ not the leader between us."

* * *

 _Later that Evening..._

* * *

 _ **Perseus Jackson**_

Percy was putting the finishing touches on the last part of his History of Remnant project for Oobleck's class. As soon as he finished, Percy pulled out his scroll and checked the time. It read 7:50 which meant he had about ten minutes until Jaune and Ren were supposed to show up at their room to sleepover. Percy peered around the room, and cringed at how messy his and Leo's room had gotten. Percy did his best to try and clean up the room. He threw his dirty clothes into his laundry hamper and he moved Leo's tools from the floor to his desk.

Percy glanced at the floor and determined it was suitable enough for them to sleep on. He then quickly made his way to the bathroom where he took a quick shower. As soon as he was done, he made his way back into his room with his towel wrapped around his waist and changed into his pjs, which consisted of a pair of gray sweatpants and a white shirt that had "Property of Beacon" printed in maroon across the chest.

Percy's head snapped to the door when he heard a knock. He made his way over and opened it. Standing in front of Percy was Jaune and Ren, both in their night wear. Jaune was wearing the blue bunny onesie he had worn during initiation and Ren was wearing a dark grey shirt and black shorts.

"Hey guys!" Percy greeted "Come on in!"

The pair walked in and set their pillows and sleeping bags down against the wall nearest the door.

"Wow you guys have so much room in here!" Jaune marveled.

"You do have quite a lot of space Percy" Ren agreed.

"I guess that's the perk of only me and Leo living here" Percy replied.

"Speaking of Leo, where is he?" Ren asked.

Percy mentally cursed inside his head. Leo had gone to work on Ozpin's aura transfer project. Percy told him to be back before Jaune and Ren came over, but Leo must've gotten wrapped up in his work.

Percy was about to make up an excuse, but as soon as he was about to open his mouth, the door knob made a noise and Leo strolled into the room. His hands were covered in grease, and his white shirt was stained with black spots.

"Hola amigos! Sorry I'm late. I was finishing up the repairs on Percy's suit down in the forge and I lost track of time" Leo casually said "Give me ten minutes to clean myself up and then let's get this party started!"

Leo made his way into the bathroom and the sound of shower could be heard through the closed door. Ren, Jaune, and Percy grabbed their pillows and sleeping bags and set them down on the floor. On one side of the room, Ren put his pillow and sleeping bag down next to Percy. On the other side of the room, Jaune laid his stuff down, leaving a space for Leo in the process.

A few minutes later, Leo exited the bathroom, wearing black pajama pants and a red tank top. On the tank top, it said "hot stuff" printed in black font.

"Jaune did you bring it?" Leo asked hopefully.

"Of course I brought it! What kind of sleepover would it be without it!?" Jaune replied.

"Uh, what are you talking about?" Percy asked.

Jaune then crouched down to his backpack and he rummaged around in it until he found what he wanted. A second later, Jaune pulled out what looked like a gaming system.

"On no, not this again" Ren groaned.

"What is it?" Percy asked again.

"This, Percy, is the limited edition SNES Classic. Complete with four controllers and two of the most classic games in Remnant's history, Super Maiden Sisters and SilverEye 008!"

"Man this is gonna be so awesome!" Leo cheered enthusiastically "Jaune, let's set this bad boy up on the T.V. and get this show on the road!"

Jaune and Leo made their way over to the T.V. and started to fiddle with the wires and cords involved with it. Meanwhile, Ren and Percy just shared a look with one another.

"I take it he really likes those games?" Percy asked.

Ren let out a sigh, "You have no idea. Whenever he had free time during our first week, he was playing one of those games until the crack of dawn."

"We're in for a long night then, aren't we?"

"Oh yes, we definitely are."

Percy began to chuckle and a small smile pressed at the corners of Ren's mouth

Leo called over to them, "Come on guys let's go! SilverEye isn't gonna play itself!"

"And so it begins…" Ren said.

Percy cracked a smile, "You guys are so going down!"

* * *

 _A Few Hours Later…_

* * *

When Percy said Jaune, Leo, and Ren we're going down earlier, he couldn't have been more wrong. Leo and Jaune had easily been the two best players on the field. The two were evenly matched and the deciding factor in every game was Ren. Ren had proved to be surprisingly adequate with the game. He said he had picked up a few tips from watching Jaune play hours upon hours of the game.

Percy on the other hand, was hopeless. He had never played a video game before in his life. Every match, he would find himself asking which button did what and why his bullets kept missing.

As Leo got up to turn off the SNES he spoke, "Man Percy, you were trash at that!" he said with a laugh.

"Yeah Perce, that was real bad" Jaune said as he agreed with Leo "I think any of my sisters could have done a better job than you!"

"In my defense, that was my first time ever playing!" Percy argued "I don't have a combined thousand hours of practice like you guys do."

"I've never played before either Percy" Ren countered "I still managed to get a few points unlike you."

"Yeah yeah whatever" Percy said with an eye roll.

"What do you think the girls are up to?" He said as he changed the subject.

"I'm not sure" Jaune said as he didn't take his eyes off the screen "Didn't Ruby say something about painting nails and gossiping when we first met her? Maybe that."

Leo snorted "Somehow I doubt they're doing that."

He couldn't have been more right.

* * *

 **Another chapter down. This one filled with more world building, training, and hopefully some humor. More to come soon.**

 **Next time: The ladies of of our favorite teams go on an adventure, they met a new ally, and there's death in the family.**


End file.
